Selective oxidation of alcohols by combinatorial catalysis

High-throughput synthesis and screening of polyoxometalate (POM) and suppor ted-metal libraries have been developed for the selective aerobic oxidation of alcohols to the corresponding aldehydes/ketones in the liquid phase. Li braries consisting of 96 catalysts were prepared in multi-well reactors and screened for catalytic activity using TLC, GC and NMR detection methods. P romising hits identified in the high-throughput primary screens were succes sfully scaled up and optimized in conventional laboratory test units. Isola ted yields confirm high selectivities of more than 90% with quantitative co nversions. Substrates tested include primary and secondary alcohols. Specif ic results will be presented for hydroxymethyl-substituted heterocycles and bicyclo-octanols. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.