Molybdenum cis-dioxo bis-phenolate ONO complexes were synthesized and have been shown to be active for DODH. Catalysts were screened for activity at 190 °C and ambient pressure, and appreciable alkene yields of up to 59% were obtained.

The need for renewable resources to displace petrochemical feedstocks is of great interest. Deoxydehydration (DODH) reduces biomass-derived polyols and diols to alkenes and dienes, possibly moving alkene production closer to carbon-neutral sources. We report the DODH of numerous aromatic, aliphatic, and biomass model diols by a dioxo-Mo(VI) catalyst, MoO2(pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylato)(HMPA). Optimal reaction conditions were found using PPh3 and 1-phenyl-1,2-ethanediol yielding up to 93% styrene. Mechanistic studies using in situ infrared spectroscopy support a biexponential kinetic regime where the rate constant of the rate-determining step is ∼5 × 10–5 s–1. DFT calculations support the kinetic studies and suggest that the largest kinetic barrier is a proton transfer from the substrate to a metal–oxo bond during diolate formation.