Temperature dependence of catalytic cyclohexane partial oxidation in a polytetrafluoroethylene reactor

Polymer-supported Co(II) catalyst was prepared and its activity and selectivity in the partial oxidation of cyclohexane was determined at several temperatures in a polytetrafluoroethylene reactor ( PTFE). The catalyst was characterized by means of SEM-EDX, FTIR, diffuse reflectance UV-Vis, N-2 sorption, and mercury porosimetry. Activation energies were determined under steady state conditions for the net production of cyclohexanone and cyclohexanol and for cyclohexane and oxygen net consumption. Some activation energies were lower than the ones reported for the uncatalyzed process, indicating that the catalyst played an important role in the initiation of the free-radical reaction