Transition Metal Catalyst Free Expedient Catechol Oxidation to Quinone via Photocatalysis

Transition metal complexes as catalysts and, occasionally, basic pH as a reaction condition were employed to imitate the catecholase activity. Using morpholine/piperazine as a catalyst, under photo‐mediated condition the catalytic aerobic oxidation of the proxy substrate 3,5‐di‐tert‐butylcatechol (DTBC) in methanol very fast was shown in this article to be a functional mimic of catecholase activity. The Michaelis–Menten kinetic model's enzymatic substrate inhibition pattern was used to describe the kinetic manifestation of DTBC oxidation. Under photo‐mediated condition the oxidation of DTBC was observed very fast which may be due to the higher energy increases the activation energy and under basic condition catechol oxidizes to o‐quinone (DTBQ).