Hydroxylation of benzene and phenol in presence of vanadium grafted Beta and ZSM-5 zeolites

Vanadium grafted zeolites type Beta and ZSM-5 were investigated for direct oxidation of benzene to phenol and hydroxylation of phenol with hydrogen peroxide in acetonitrile media at 353 K. The introduction of vanadium was done by reductive solid state ion exchange. The morphological characterisation of samples and the stability of the vanadium sites were examined before and after the reaction by applying FTIR, UV–Vis techniques and reduction/oxidation cycles (TPR/TPO). The results proved that the vanadium sites had retained their multiple oxidation state when used in liquid phase oxidation at high vanadium atom efficiency for the reaction product.