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Zinc oxide nanoparticles doped manganese carbonate catalysts [X% ZnOx–MnCO3] (where X = 0–7) were prepared via a facile and straightforward coprecipitation procedure, which upon different calcination treatments yields different manganese oxides, that is, [X% ZnOx–MnO2] and [X% ZnOx–Mn2O3]. A comparative catalytic study was conducted to evaluate the catalytic efficiency between carbonates and oxides for the selective oxidation of secondary alcohols to corresponding ketones using molecular oxygen as a green oxidizing agent without using any additives or bases. The prepared catalysts were characterized by different techniques such as SEM, EDX, XRD, TEM, TGA, BET, and FTIR spectroscopy. The 1% ZnOx–MnCO3 calcined at 300°C exhibited the best catalytic performance and possessed highest surface area, suggesting that the calcination temperature and surface area play a significant role in the alcohol oxidation. The 1% ZnOx–MnCO3 catalyst exhibited superior catalytic performance and selectivity in the aerial oxidation of 1-phenylethanol, where 100% alcohol conversion and more than 99% product selectivity were obtained in only 5 min with superior specific activity (48 mmol·g−1·h−1) and 390.6 turnover frequency (TOF). The specific activity obtained is the highest so far (to the best of our knowledge) compared to the catalysts already reported in the literatures used for the oxidation of 1-phenylethanol. It was found that ZnOx nanoparticles play an essential role in enhancing the catalytic efficiency for the selective oxidation of alcohols. The scope of the oxidation process is extended to different types of alcohols. A variety of primary, benzylic, aliphatic, allylic, and heteroaromatic alcohols were selectively oxidized into their corresponding carbonyls with 100% convertibility without overoxidation to the carboxylic acids under base-free conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work reports the zirconia (ZrOx) nanoparticles doped MnCO3 catalysts prepared by facile and simple coprecipitation technique and the synthesis of zirconia-manganese carbonate [X% ZrOx–MnCO3] (where X% = 0–7%) catalyst which upon calcination at 400°C is converted to zirconia-manganese dioxide [1% ZrOx–MnO2] and when calcined at 500°C is converted to zirconia-manganic trioxide [1% ZrOx–Mn2O3]. A comparative catalytic study was performed to investigate the catalytic efficiency between carbonate and oxides for the selective oxidation of 1-phenylethanol by using molecular O2 as a clean oxidant. The influence of several parameters such as w/w% of ZrOx, reaction time, calcination temperature, catalyst amount, and reaction temperature has been thoroughly examined using oxidation of 1-phenylethanol as a model substrate. The 1% ZrOx–MnCO3 precalcined at 300°C exhibited the best catalytic efficiency. It was found that ZrOx nanoparticles also play an essential role in enhancing the effectiveness of the catalytic system for the aerobic oxidation of alcohols. Furthermore, the physical and chemical properties of synthesized catalysts were evaluated by microscopic and spectroscopic techniques. An extremely high specific activity of 40 mmol·g−1·h−1 with a 100% conversion of oxidation product and selectivity of >99% was achieved within extremely short reaction time (6 min). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]