Abstract

Selective oxidation of alcohols is a fundamental and significant transformation for the large-scale production of fine chemicals, UV and visible light driven photocatalytic systems for alcohol oxidation have been developed, however, the long wavelength near infrared (NIR) and infrared (IR) light have not yet fully utilized by the present photocatalytic systems. Herein, we reported carbon quantum dots (CQDs) can function as an effective near infrared (NIR) light driven photocatalyst for the selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde. Based on the NIR light driven photo-induced electron transfer property and its photocatalytic activity for H2O2 decomposition, this metal-free catalyst could realize the transformation from benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde with high selectivity (100%) and conversion (92%) under NIR light irradiation. HO˙ is the main active oxygen specie in benzyl alcohol selective oxidative reaction confirmed by terephthalic acid photoluminescence probing assay (TA-PL), selecting toluene as the substrate. Such metal-free photocatalytic system also selectively converts other alcohol substrates to their corresponding aldehydes with high conversion, demonstrating a potential application of accessing traditional alcohol oxidation chemistry.

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.