1. Plasmon-enhanced electrochemical oxidation of 4-(hydroxymethyl)benzoic acid
Jingjing Qiu, Daniel Boskin, Dallas Oleson, Weiming Wu, Marc Anderson J Chem Phys. 2022 Aug 28;157(8):081101. doi: 10.1063/5.0106914.
Plasmon-mediated electrocatalysis based on plasmonic gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) has emerged as a promising approach to facilitate electrochemical reactions with the introduction of light to excite the plasmonic electrodes. We have investigated the electrochemical oxidation of 4-(hydroxymethyl)benzoic acid (4-HMBA) on gold (Au), nickel (Ni), and platinum (Pt) metal working electrodes in alkaline electrolytes. Au has the lowest onset potential for catalyzing the electrooxidation of 4-HMBA among the three metals in base, whereas Pt does not catalyze the electrooxidation of 4-HMBA under alkaline conditions, although it is conventionally a good electrocatalyst for alcohol oxidation. Both 4-carboxybenzaldehyde and terephthalic acid are detected as the products of electrochemical oxidation of 4-HMBA on the Au working electrode by high-performance liquid chromatography . The electrodeposited Au NPs on indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated glass is further utilized as the working electrode for the 4-HMBA electrooxidation. With its broad absorption in the visible and near-infrared range, we show that the Au NPs on the ITO electrode could enhance the electrochemical oxidation of 4-HMBA under green and red LED light illuminations (505 and 625 nm). A possible reaction mechanism is proposed for the electrochemical oxidation of 4-HMBA on Au working electrodes in an alkaline electrolyte.
2. Synthesis of terephthalic acid via Diels-Alder reactions with ethylene and oxidized variants of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural
Joshua J Pacheco, Mark E Davis Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014 Jun 10;111(23):8363-7. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1408345111. Epub 2014 May 27.
Terephthalic acid (PTA), a monomer in the synthesis of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), is obtained by the oxidation of petroleum-derived p-xylene. There is significant interest in the synthesis of renewable, biomass-derived PTA. Here, routes to PTA starting from oxidized products of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) that can be produced from biomass are reported. These routes involve Diels-Alder reactions with ethylene and avoid the hydrogenation of HMF to 2,5-dimethylfuran. Oxidized derivatives of HMF are reacted with ethylene over solid Lewis acid catalysts that do not contain strong Brønsted acids to synthesize intermediates of PTA and its equally important diester, dimethyl terephthalate (DMT). The partially oxidized HMF, 5-(hydroxymethyl)furoic acid (HMFA), is reacted with high pressure ethylene over a pure-silica molecular sieve containing framework tin (Sn-Beta) to produce the Diels-Alder dehydration product, 4-(hydroxymethyl)benzoic acid (HMBA), with 31% selectivity at 61% HMFA conversion after 6 h at 190 °C. If HMFA is protected with methanol to form methyl 5-(methoxymethyl)furan-2-carboxylate (MMFC), MMFC can react with ethylene in the presence of Sn-Beta for 2 h to produce methyl 4-(methoxymethyl)benzenecarboxylate (MMBC) with 46% selectivity at 28% MMFC conversion or in the presence of a pure-silica molecular sieve containing framework zirconium (Zr-Beta) for 6 h to produce MMBC with 81% selectivity at 26% MMFC conversion. HMBA and MMBC can then be oxidized to produce PTA and DMT, respectively. When Lewis acid containing mesoporous silica (MCM-41) and amorphous silica, or Brønsted acid containing zeolites (Al-Beta), are used as catalysts, a significant decrease in selectivity/yield of the Diels-Alder dehydration product is observed.
3. Bimetallic complexes based on carboxylate and xanthate ligands: synthesis and electrochemical investigations
Yvonne H Lin, Nina H Leung, Katherine B Holt, Amber L Thompson, James D E T Wilton-Ely Dalton Trans. 2009 Oct 14;(38):7891-901. doi: 10.1039/b901822k. Epub 2009 May 15.
The homobimetallic ruthenium(II) and osmium(II) complexes [{RuR(CO)(PPh(3))(2)}(2)(S(2)COCH(2)C(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2))] (R = CH=CHBu(t), CH=CHC(6)H(4)Me-4, C(C[triple bond]CPh)=CHPh, CH=CHCPh(2)OH) and [{Os(CH=CHC(6)H(4)Me-4)(CO)(PPh(3))(2)}(2)(S(2)COCH(2)C(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2))] form readily from the reactions of [MRCl(CO)(BTD)(PPh(3))(2)] (M = Ru or Os; BTD = 2,1,3-benzothiadiazole) with the dixanthate KS(2)COCH(2)C(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2)K. Addition of KS(2)COCH(2)C(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2)K to two equivalents of cis-[RuCl(2)(dppm)(2)] leads to the formation of [{(dppm)(2)Ru}(2)(S(2)COCH(2)C(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2))](2+). The benzoate complexes [RuR{O(2)CC(6)H(4)(CH(2)OH)-4}(CO)(PPh(3))(2)] (R = CH=CHBu(t), CH=CHC(6)H(4)Me-4, C(C[triple bond]CPh)=CHPh) are obtained by treatment of [RuRCl(CO)(BTD)(PPh(3))(2)] with 4-(hydroxymethyl)benzoic acid in the presence of base. Reaction of [RuHCl(CO)(PPh(3))(3)] or [RuRCl(CO)(BTD)(PPh(3))(2)] with 4-(hydroxymethyl)benzoic acid in the absence of base leads to formation of the chloride analogue [RuCl{O(2)CC(6)H(4)(CH(2)OH)-4}(CO)(PPh(3))(2)]. The unsymmetrical complex [{Ru(CH=CHC(6)H(4)Me-4)(CO)(PPh(3))(2)}(2)(O(2)CC(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2))] forms from the sequential treatment of [Ru(CH=CHC(6)H(4)Me-4){O(2)CC(6)H(4)(CH(2)OH)-4}(CO)(PPh(3))(2)] with base, CS(2) and [Ru(CH=CHC(6)H(4)Me-4)Cl(CO)(BTD)(PPh(3))(2)]. The new mixed-donor xanthate-carboxylate ligand, KO(2)CC(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2)K is formed by treatment of 4-(hydroxymethyl)benzoic acid with excess KOH and two equivalents of carbon disulfide. This ligand reacts with two equivalents of [Ru(CH=CHC(6)H(4)Me-4)Cl(BTD)(CO)(PPh(3))(2)] or cis-[RuCl(2)(dppm)(2)] to yield [{(dppm)(2)Ru}(2)(O(2)CC(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2))](2+) or [{Ru(CH=CHC(6)H(4)Me-4)(CO)(PPh(3))(2)}(2)(O(2)CC(6)H(4)CH(2)OCS(2))], respectively. Electrochemical experiments are also reported in which communication between the metal centres is investigated.
