Efficient allylic oxidation of cyclohexene catalyzed by trimetallic hybrid nano-mixed oxide (Ru/Co/Ce) Original Research Article

The paper deals with the reactivity of RuO2/Co3O4/CeO2 nanoparticles prepared by a reverse micelle approach, which was precipitated by alkali-hydrolysis of RuCl3, Co(NO3)2 and Ce(NO3)2 and transformed into RuO2/Co3O4/CeO2 catalyst by calcinations in air at 400 °C. The catalysts were investigated with XRD, TEM, XPS, and BET techniques and were tested for oxidation of cyclohexene. The nano-catalyst exhibited high catalytic activities for the oxidation of cyclohexene to the corresponding α,β-unsaturated ketone under heterogeneous condition. In order to obtain maximum conversion of cyclohexene, the reaction parameters, like reaction temperature and time, were optimized. Under the optimized conditions, a maximum of 97.7% cyclohexene conversion and 95% selectivity, was achieved with RuO2/Co3O4/CeO2 mixed oxide nano-catalyst.