Catalysis of structure-like macromolecules supported manganese tetraphenylporphyrin for cyclohexane oxidation

Manganese tetraphenylporphyrin (Mn TPP) has been successfully supported on chitosan (CTS), chitin (CTN) and cellulose (CLS) by means of physical adsorption, and they are characterized by UV–Vis spectroscopy. The supported catalysts exhibit enhanced activity and effective recycle (except for Mn TPP/CLS) for oxidation of cyclohexane in the presence of air as oxidant. Both Mn TPP/CTS and Mn TPP/CTN show higher selectivity for cyclohexanone and cyclohexanol, whereas Mn TPP/CLS shows lower selectivity. The kind of support influences the catalytic activities and the selectivity for the supported catalysts. Appearance of the catalytic differences is attributed to the presence of the microenvironment differences for the supports.