Evidence of protonation during the oxidation of some aryl alcohols by permanganate in perchloric acid medium and mechanism of the oxidation processes

The oxidation of benzyl alcohol and methoxy-, chloro-, and nitro- substituted benzyl alcohols by permanganate has been studied in aqueous and acetic acid medium in presence of perchloric acid. The reaction is first-order in MnO₄^?] and XC₆H₄CH₂OH], but the order is complex with respect to H⁺]. Different thermodynamic parameters have been evaluated. The reaction occurs through the protonation of alcohol in a fast preequilibrium followed by a slow rate-determining oxidation step. A two-electron transfer oxidation step has been suggested for benzyl alcohol and chloro- and nitro- substituted alcohols, while the oxidation of methoxy compounds involves a one-electron transfer via a free-radical mechanism. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.