GAS-PHASE OXIDATION OF ALCOHOLS OVER ALKALI-MAGNESIUM ORTHOPHOSPHATES

In this work we synthesized catalytic solids by digesting freshly prep ared magnesium orthophosphate with a saturated solution of alkali carb onates. The solids thus formed were mixed orthophosphates of structure X MgPO4 (X = Li, Na, K) that were characterized by X-ray diffraction and diffuse reflectance IR spectroscopy. Ali of them exhibited a high activity and selectivity in the conversion of primary and secondary al cohols into their corresponding carbonyl compounds. Their activity and selectivity are compared with that of X MgPO4 orthophosphates (X = Li , Na, K) obtained from a dry phase. (C) 1996 Academic Press,Inc.