Fast and Selective Oxidation of Primary Alcohols to Aldehydes or to Carboxylic Acids and of Secondary Alcohols to Ketones Mediated by Oxoammonium Salts under Two-Phase Conditions

Article abstract of DOI:10.1021/jo00388a038

Primary alcohols are quantitatively oxidized to aldehydes in a few minutes at 0 deg C in CH2Cl2-0.35 M aqueous NaOCl in the presence of catalytic amounts of 4-methoxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl (3b).Cocatalysis by Br^- and buffering of pH at 8.6 with NaHCO3 are also required.Secondary alcohols are converted to ketones.Further oxidation of aldehydes to carboxylic acids is slow, but the reaction is completed in a few minutes under the same conditions by addition of catalytic amounts of phase-transfer catalyst.All reactions are highly selective.Onlya slight excess of NaOCl is required.The method can be applied to saturated alkyl and aryl alkyl substrates.