Selective Aerobic Oxidation of Methanol in the Coexistence of Amines by Nanoporous Gold Catalysts: Highly Efficient Synthesis of Formamides

Abstract

Holey gold: Highly selective aerobic oxidation of methanol over alkylamines was achieved with a reusable nanoporous gold (AuNPore) catalyst that was fabricated from a Au–Ag alloy (see figure). This excellent chemoselectivity enabled direct N-formylation of alkylamines from a mixture of methanol and amines. The remarkable catalytic activity was attributed to the synergistic effect between gold and the residual silver remaining in the AuNPore.