Highly Diluted Copper in a Silica Matrix as Active Catalyst for Propylene Oxidation to Acrolein

The use of copper phthalocyanine as the copper precursor extremely diluted in a silica matrix (below 0.1%) was found to result in a very active catalyst in the selective oxidation of propene by oxygen to produce acrolein with selectivities above 50% and yields of similar to 10%.