Controlling selectivity in catalysis: Selective greener oxidation of cyclohexene under microwave conditions

A smart and greener microwave approach to the selective oxidation of cyclohexene is reported whereby, depending on the reaction conditions, the epoxide (65% conversion, 75% selectivity), the enol (70% conversion, 80% selectivity) or the enone (>99% conversion, 89% selectivity) can be obtained in a short period of time ranging from 1 to 20 min. A cobalt-salen-SBA-15 material was employed as catalyst. The reported solventless microwave protocol was simple, greener and more efficient compared to any other reported cyclohexene oxidations.