Kinetics and Mechanism of the Oxidation of Benzyl Alcohol and Benzaldehyde by Aqueous Sodium Dichromate

Abstract

A kinetic study of the oxidation of a series of substituted benzyl alcohols and benzaldehydes by neutral aqueous sodium dichromate has been completed. The aldehydes are more resistant to oxidation because the reaction mechanism presumably involves hydration prior to oxidation, and under the conditions employed the extent of this hydration is suppressed. These conclusions are consistent with the activation parameters which indicate that the difference in oxidation rate is due to a more negative entropy of activation for the aldehydes.