Selective Oxidation of Benzyl Alcohol Over Copper Phthalocyanine Immobilized on MCM-41

Copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) complexes immobilized on “neat” and Ti4+ and Al3+ containing MCM-41 mimic the functionality of metalloenzymes. These novel materials catalyze the oxidation of benzyl alcohol to selectively benzaldehyde at moderate temperatures using peroxides and molecular oxygen as oxidant. Electron paramagnetic resonance and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic studies revealed that the acidity of the support (MCM-41) influences the electronic structure of the immobilized CuPc. On acidic supports a part of copper in CuPc got reduced from a “formal” +2 to +1 oxidation state. This reduction of copper in its oxidation state on different supports decreased in the order: Al-MCM-41 (Brönsted and strong Lewis acid sites) > MCM-41 (silanol sites) > Ti-MCM-41 (weak Lewis acid sites). A linear variation in catalytic activity with the concentration of Cu1+ ions in different catalyst samples was observed. The study reveals that by suitably modifying the acidic properties of the support one can, in principle, fine-tune the electronic and catalytic properties of the active oxidation sites.