Aerobic oxidation catalysts enable useful organic oxidations without production of stoichiometric metal waste. Tellurium(II)-containing compounds are aerobic oxidation catalysts that can react with singlet oxygen to form an active tellurium(IV) oxidant. Furthermore, tellurium-containing chromophores can produce singlet oxygen, thus acting as a self-sensitizing photocatalyst. The mechanism of aerobic photo-oxidation of tellurium-containing chromophores has been explored using reaction rates and computational approaches. Several substrates react with the telluroxide (Te(IV)) intermediate, regenerating the tellurium-containing chromophore (Te(II)) and an oxidized product. Investigation into the mechanism and scope of the reaction will be presented.

Tellurium-containing aerobic photocatalysts

256th National Meeting (2018)

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