Platinum Complexes for Selective Oxidations in Water

Platinum complexes used in catalysis were the first to utilize hydrogen peroxide in oxidation reactions, resulting successful in epoxidation, sulfoxidation, and Baeyer-Villiger oxidations. This are due to the soft Lewis acidic character of these complexes along with some peculiar properties of Pt that make it unique among late transition metals. Among these properties is the full compatibility of some phosphine containing Pt complexes with water, opening the way to the use of aqueous micellar media to perform oxidations. Improved activities and selectivities at any level (chemo-, regio-, and enantio-) were observed because of specific complex/micelle interactions capable of decreasing the activation energy of certain pathways involved in oxidation processes. Additional advantages observed in micellar media were substrate selectivity and reduction of the E-factor in a series of reactions, ultimately leading to industrial applications.