LAUSR

A new series of cobalt/zinc-grafted mesoporous silica nanoparticles (CZ-MSN) catalysts were synthesized and characterized using FTIR, SEM, TEM, XRD and nitrogen adsorption-desorption. The molar ratio of Si/Zn was 10 and the amounts of cobalt atom were 1, 3, 5 and 7 wt% (denoted as CZM-X). The nitrogen adsorption/desorption results showed that the surface area increased from 322 in CZM-7 to 408 m 2 g −1 in CZM-1. The catalytic activity was investigated for the oxidation reaction by cyclohexanone oxime synthesis from cyclohexanimine using ozone gas flow under UV light at room temperature for 20 min. The results showed that the oxidation of cyclohexanimine to cyclohexanone oxime was 98% over CZM-1 and its selectivity was 97%. The catalytic activity decreased with increasing the cobalt atoms as the order of CZM-1 > CZM-3 > CZM-5 > CZM-7 > Zn-MSN > MSN. The significant advantages of using CZM-1 including high conversion and selectivity, low reaction temperature, and short reaction time. This study introduces a new pathway for oxime synthesis with excellent performance.