The first manganese N-confused porphyrins catalyzed oxidation of alkene.

A series of N -methyl N-confused porphyrin manganese complexes ( 3a – 3f ) were synthesized and characterized by UV–vis, XPS, HR-MS and cyclic voltammetry. These complexes were utilized to catalyze the styrene oxidation. It turned out their catalytic activities were comparable with manganese tetraphenylporphyrin (MnTPP). Among all investigated manganese N-confused porphyrins, the most electron deficient 3f exhibited the best catalytic activity for the alkene oxidation. The proposed mechanism for the catalytic oxidation has also been described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]