Designing a Solid Catalyst for the Selective Low‐Temperature Oxidation of Cyclohexane to Cyclohexanone

By immobilizing the cobalt complex 1 on the glycine‐functionalized inner walls of mesoporous silica (MCM‐41), and efficient heterogeneous catalyst for the selective oxidation of cyclohexane to cyclohexanone with tert‐butyl hydroperoxide is produced. The detailed atomic structure of the active site during catalysis was determined by in‐situ X‐ray absorption spectroscopy. The findings are important for the design of new efficient oxidation catalysts. equation image