OMS-2 catalyzed oxidation of tetralin: A comparative study of microwave and conventional heating under open vessel conditions Original Research Article

Microwave heating as an alternative to conventional heating for K-OMS catalyzed oxidation of tetralin under atmospheric pressure conditions has been described. The conversions and selectivities obtained by microwave and conventional heating are compared for K-OMS-2 catalysts. Significant differences were found in conversion and product distribution when comparing the conventional and microwave heated experimental results performed under the same reaction conditions. Conversions up to 88% and turnover frequencies up to 20 were achieved under microwave irradiation. The major products of oxidation of tetralin were tetralone and tetralol (>75%). In addition, the effects of using different solvent systems in the reactions were studied. The characterization of catalysts before and after the reactions using XRD, SEM, and Raman are reported.