Oxidation of alkylarenes using aqueous potassium permanganate under cavitation: comparison of acoustic and hydrodynamic techniques

Various alkylarenes were oxidized to the corresponding aryl carboxylic acids using aqueous potassium permanganate under heterogeneous condition in the presence of hydrodynamic cavitation and the results of the reaction have been compared with the acoustic cavitation in terms of their energy efficiency. The rate of reaction was determined for each reaction. In the oxidation of p-xylene, seven times more product could be obtained in the case of hydrodynamic cavitation than in the case of acoustic cavitation. The reaction was found to be considerably accelerated at ambient temperature. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.