Oxidation of Cyclohexane by a High-valent Iron Bispidine Complex: a Combined Experimental and Computational Mechanistic Study

Experimental data suggest that there are various competing pathways for the catalytic and stoichiometric oxygenation of cyclohexane, assisted by iron-bispidine complexes and using various oxidants (H(2)O(2), O(2), PhIO). Density functional theory calculations indicate that both Fe(IV)=O and Fe(V)=O species are accessible and efficiently transfer their oxygen atoms to cyclohexane. The reactivities of the two isomers each and the two possible spin states for the Fe(IV)=O and Fe(V)=O species are sufficiently different to allow an interpretation of the experimental data.