Aerobic Oxidation of Cyclohexane Catalyzed by Flame-Made Nano-Structured Co/SiO2 Materials

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, CoII 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 catalys