Selective Oxidation of 1,3-Diisopropylbenzene with Molecular Oxygen Catalyzed by OMS-2: A Heterogeneous Approach

Selective oxidation of 1,3-diisopropylbenzene with molecular oxygen was performed under a heterogeneous catalyst system of manganese molecular sieves (OMS-2) and N-hydroxyphthalimide (NHPI). The catalyst system showed high conversion (>99%) and selectivity (86%) toward the target diol product under mild conditions (40 °C, 560 psi). The recyclability test demonstrated that the catalyst system retained 80% selectivity after three consecutive reactions, highlighting its potential as a practical heterogeneous approach for the reaction. Discussion on the reaction mechanism suggested that a lower reaction temperature and abundant active sites are beneficial to suppress the β-scission reaction, thus improving the selectivity and yield of the target product.