Iron(III)-Salen-Catalyzed H2O2 Oxidation of Dibenzyl Sulphide

Abstract

Iron(III)-salen complexes {salen = N,N'-bis(salicylidene)-ethylene diaminato} efficiently catalyze the H2O2 oxidation of organic sulphides. This reaction leads to the formation of sulphoxides as the major product. The spectrophotometric kinetic study shows that the reaction follows Michaelis-Menten kinetics. The rate of the reaction is highly sensitive to the nature of the substituents present in the phenolic moiety of salen ligand based on the spectral and kinetic studies. A mechanism involving electron transfer from the substrate to the oxidant in the rate controlling step has been proposed.