Facile and efficient preparation of nitriles through FeCl4-IL-SiO2-catalyzed direct oxidation of alcohols with hydrogen peroxide

A series of silica-supported functionalized ionic liquids catalysts have been prepared and tested in the oxidative conversion of alcohols to nitriles with H2O2 as the oxidant. The features of this heterogeneous reaction system were studied by tuning various reaction parameters including catalyst selection, amount of the catalyst, and effect of solvents. Among the catalysts, FeCl4-IL-SiO2 exhibited the highest efficiency in direct oxidation of alcohols to nitriles under the optimized condition along with good recycle performance. Also, a possible catalytic mechanism is provided.