Acceptorless dehydrogenation and aerobic oxidation of alcohols with a reusable binuclear rhodium(ii) catalyst in water

Abstract

A water-soluble binuclear rhodium(II) complex was found to be an efficient catalyst for both acceptorless dehydrogenation and aerobic oxidation of alcohols under air to produce carboxylic acids or ketones in water. The catalyst is highly efficient with substrate/catalyst ratios up to 5 × 10³ being feasible, and could be recycled 19 times without significant loss of activity.