Palladium-Catalyzed Hydrolytic Cleavage of Aromatic C-O Bonds.

Metallic palladium surfaces are highly selective in promoting the reductive hydrolysis of aromatic ethers in aqueous phase at relatively mild temperatures and pressures of H2. At quantitative conversions, the selectivity to hydrolysis products of PhOR ethers was observed to range from 50 % (R=Ph) to greater than 90 % (R=n-C4H9, cyclohexyl, and PhCH2CH2). By analysis of the evolution of products with and without incorporation of H218O, the...