Palladium-Supported Nanoceria: A Highly Efficient Catalyst for Solvent-Free Selective Oxidation of Ethylbenzene to Acetophenone

摘要

The benzylic C-H oxidation of ethylbenzene, a toxic petroleum waste, to high value-added acetophenone is a fundamental yet important chemical transformation. Herein, palladium nanoparticles were immobilized on a highly mesoporous CeO2 surface for enhancing the catalytic activity. The Pd/CeO(2)nanocomposite was employed in the benzylic C-H oxidation of ethylbenzene under solvent-free conditions and using tert-butyl hydroperoxide as oxidant which displayed high conversion of 99.8% and a selectivity of 79% towards acetophenone. Moreover, the Pd/CeO2 catalysts were highly stable and could be recycled up to the fifth catalytic cycle without remarkable loss in its catalytic activity.