A Novel and Efficient Oxidation of Benzyl Alcohols to Benzaldehydes with DMSO Catalyzed by Acids

Oxidation of benzyl alcohols to the corresponding alde- hydes was achieved by an acid catalyzed DMSO oxidation. When the oxidation was catalyzed by HBr, no side products were detected. In most cases, the yields were excellent. The oxidation rate depends on both the nature and the position of the substituents on the aromat- ic rings. A tentative mechanism is proposed for the oxidation.