Catalyst recycling in the epoxidation of alkenes catalyzed by MoO2(acac)2 through precipitation with poly(ethylene oxide)

Addition of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) to the catalytic system MoO2(acac)(2)/TBHP/t-butanol used for epoxidation of olefins allowed an easy strategy for catalyst recycling and product recovery. This procedure is based upon catalyst removal by precipitation of a complex with the polymer, being advantageous over other similar recycling methodologies in that there is no requirement for specially prepared catalysts or solvents. Although some catalyst leaching is detected, the epoxidation of cis-cyclooctene was achieved with global turnover numbers close to 650. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.