Oxidation of Cyclic Ketones Catalyzed by Polyethylene Glycol and Rhenium Carbonyl under Basic and Exeptionally Mild Conditions

Article abstract of DOI:10.1021/jo00239a023

Monocyclic ketones react with oxygen, potassium hydroxide, potassium carbonate, and catalytic amounts of rhenium carbonyl and polyethylene glycol (PEG-400 or R4H⁺X^- or TDA-1), at room temperature and 1 atm, to give diacids in fine yields.Bicyclic ketones afford keto diacids or hydroxyquinones, depending on the nature of the substrate.