Platinum complexes of cationic ligands for the aerobic oxidation of inert perfluoro-substituted alcohols

Trifluoroethanol was oxidized with O-2 to trifluoroethyl trifluoracetate (>98% selectivity) using Pt-II(dppz)Cl-2 as a catalyst in the presence of H2SO4; Pt-II(phen)Cl-2 was inactive. Kinetic isotope effects suggest the C-H bond activation as the rate determining step and DFT calculations showed different frontier orbitals for Pt-II(dppz) and Pt-II(phen)-based catalysts.