Remarkable enhancement of aerobic epoxidation reactivity for olefins catalyzed by μ-oxo-bisiron(III) porphyrins under ambient conditions

With μ-oxo dimeric iron(III) porphyrins [(FeIIITPP)2O] as catalyst, isobutylaldehyde as co-reductant, and dioxygen as oxidant, an efficient model system for epoxidation of olefins has been developed. Compared with mono-metalloporphyrins as catalyst, a remarkable enhancement of reactivity was obtained for the present olefin epoxidation system, in which the turnover number (TON) of the catalyst has doubled from about 700 million to 1400 million. Moreover, a plausible mechanism involving both binuclear and mononuclear intermediate has been proposed.