Microwave oxidation of alkenes and alcohols using highly active and stable mesoporous organotitanium silicates

Mesoporous organically modified Ti-MCM-41 materials were synthesized employing different Ti precursors. Materials were found to possess improved properties in terms of stability, hydrophobicity and activity compared to the parent Ti-MCM-41, preserving their mesoporous structural order. The organically modified mesoporous materials were found to be very active and selective in the oxidation of various substrates including alcohols and alkenes under microwave irradiation using hydrogen peroxide. The materials were also highly stable and reusable up to four times preserving over 90% of their initial activity. The high activity and stability of the solids can be attributed to the higher Ti loading compared to the parent material as well as to an increase in hydrophobicity due to the organic functionalisation. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.