Aerobic oxidation of cyclohexane catalyzed by flame-made nano-structured Co/SiO2 materials

Abstract

The aerobic oxidation of cyclohexane was studied at 130 °C in the presence of a Co/SiO2 catalyst, synthesized by flame-spray pyrolysis. Characterization of the material indicates that at low Co-loadings, Co II is predominantly present as tetrahedral species, whereas at higher loadings also small amounts of octahedral species can be found at the surface of the agglomerated nano-particles. Catalytic experiments demonstrate high activity, causing a complete in situ deperoxidation of the intermediate cyclohexylhydroperoxide. Hot-separation and catalyst-recycle tests corroborate the heterogeneous nature of the catalyst. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.