Iron Carbonyl Thiourea Hybrid Material Based on Functionalised Silica from Rice Husk Ash for Oxidation of Limonene

Iron carbonyl thiourea, RHACP1Fe was successfully immobilized onto inorganic silica support from rice husk ask via chloropropyltriethoxysilane (CPTES) and the resulting catalyst was labelled as RHACP1Fe. This mesoporous organic-inorganic hybrid catalyst showed a specific surface area of 245.0 m2g-1. The 29 Si MAS NMR solid state spectrum showed the presence of Q4, Q3, T3 and T2 silicon centres in RHACP1Fe. The oxidation of limonene with H2O2 was studied using RHACP1Fe. A moderate selectivity to the desired product (limonene peroxide) of 67% and a maximum limonene conversion of 60% was achieved. RHACP1Fe could be reused several times without losing its catalytic activity.