LAUSR

Abstract The palladium catalyzed oxidation of alkenes with molecular oxygen is a synthetically important reaction which employs palladium catalysts in solution; therefore, a solvent plays a critical role for the process. In this study, we have tested several green solvents as a reaction medium for the allylic oxidation of a series of alkenes. Dimethylcarbonate, methyl isobutyl ketone, and propylene carbonate, solvents with impressive sustainability ranks and very scarcely exploited in palladium catalyzed oxidations, were proved to be excellent alternatives for the solvents conventionally employed in these processes, such as acetic acid. Palladium acetate alone or in the combination with p-benzoquinone efficiently operates as the catalyst for the oxidation of alkenes by dioxygen under 5–10 atm. For most substrates, the systems in green solvents showed better selectivity for allylic oxidation products as compared to pure acetic acid; moreover, the reactions in propylene carbonate solutions occurred even faster than in acetic acid.