Oxygen activation by metal complexes and alkyl hydroperoxides. Applications of mechanistic probes to explore the role of alkoxyl radicals in alkane functionalization

The mechanism of the oxidation of cycloalkanes by tertiary alkyl hydroperoxides catalysed by iron(III) dichlorotris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine [FeIIICl2(TPA)]+ and by the acetate bridged (µ-oxo) di-iron complex [Fe2III(TPA)2O(OAc)]3+ has been investigated. Product studies do not support oxidation via a high valent iron–oxo intermediate (formally FeVO), but are consistent with a mechanism involving hydrogen atom abstraction from the alkane by alkoxyl radicals derived from the hydroperoxide. In the presence of a large excess of tert-butyl hydroperoxide, the oxidation of cyclohexane yields cyclohexanone, cyclohexanol and tert-butylcyclohexyl peroxide in more than stoichiometric amounts and, in the case of the mono-iron catalyst, one equivalent of cyclohexyl chloride. Replacement of Me3COOH by hydroperoxides, which could yield tert-alkoxyl radicals having much shorter lifetimes than the tert-butoxyl radical prevents oxidation of the cycloalkane. The products obtained with these hydroperoxide mechanistic probes are those derived from the fast unimolecular reactions (generally β-scissions) of the corresponding alkoxyl radicals. The inapplicability of dimethyl sulfide as a mechanistically diagnostic trap for the putative FeVO intermediate and the value of di-tert-butyl hyponitrite as a non-iron-based source of tert-butoxyl radicals are discussed.