Highly Selective Conversion of Benzyl Alcohol to Benzaldehyde Over Cu-Co Bimetallic Catalysts

Carbonyl compounds serve as pivotal organic intermediates, with alcohol oxidation being a fundamental route for their synthesis. This study presents an efficient protocol for fabricating Cu-Co bimetallic nanoparticles as heterogeneous catalysts for the selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde. Comprehensive characterization involving UV-Vis, FT-IR, SEM-EDS, XRD, XPS, TEM/HRTEM, and VSM confirmed the successful formation of Cu-Co nanostructures with distinct synergistic interactions. Catalytic evaluation under mild conditions (40°C, TBHP oxidant) afforded a benzyl alcohol conversion of 92.19% with 98.07% selectivity toward benzaldehyde, yielding the product in 90.41% isolated yield. The catalyst demonstrated notable recyclability without significant performance decay. Mechanistic analysis revealed that the enhanced catalytic efficiency originated from the electronic synergy between Cu and Co species.