Suitable combination of promoter and micellar catalyst for kilo fold rate acceleration on propanol to propionaldehyde conversion in aqueous media

Oxidation of propanol by chromic acid produces propionaldehyde under kinetic condition [propanol]T ≫ [Cr(VI)]T. This oxidation reaction is performed also in presence of micellar catalysts (anionic, cationic and neutral) and hetero-aromatic nitrogen bases promoters (picolinic acid, 2,2′-bipyridine, 1,10-phenanthroline) in aqueous media. The product is confirmed by 2,4-DNP test and 1H NMR spectroscopy. Anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS), neutral surfactant triton X-100 (TX-100) accelerated the reaction both in presence and absence of promoters whereas cationic surfactant N-cetyl pyridinium chloride (CPC) inhibited the reaction. Combination of SDS and bipy is found to be the most efficient for this oxidation.