Oxidation of alcohols to aldehydes or ketones with a new highly active trivalent iodine compound, ABBX

Togo et al. have reported the preparation of a new highly active trivalent iodine compound, 1-acetoxy-5-bromo-1,2-benziodoxol-3(1H)-one (abbrev. ABBX), and its use for the oxidation of various alcohols to aldehydes or ketones with it. ABBX oxidizes aliphatic primary and secondary alcohols to the corresponding aldehydes and ketones in good yields by simple extraction of the reaction mixture. ABBX is soluble and shows high reactivity in solvents such as CHCl₃, DMF and DMSO. 5-Bromo-2-iodobenzoic acid, formed as a co-product of this reaction, can be recovered by acidification of the aqueous layer.