Greening the Wacker process

Wacker oxidation of various terminal olefins with Pd-0/C-KBrO3, a nontoxic, environmentally benign, and easy to handle catalyst system, was achieved in high isolated yields. The described protocol offers an alternative to the traditional Wacker system which uses CuCl2 as co-catalyst. The catalyst is reusable while maintaining high activity and selectivity. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.