Benzylic C-H bonds are selectively oxidized to the corresponding
carbonyl functionalities using catalytic quantities of 2-iodobenzoic
acid (2IBAcid) and Oxone®. The reported procedure tolerates
different functional groups and operates under mild conditions.
A radical mechanism is proposed for the transformation and evidence
supporting the proposed mechanism is also presented.
oxidation -
o-iodoxybenzoic
acid (IBX) - single-electron transfer - rearrangement - Oxone®