FeCl3-activated oxidation of alkanes by [Os(N)O3]-.

Although the ion [Os(VIII)(N)(O)(3)](-) is a stable species and is not known to act as an oxidant for organic substrates, it is readily activated by FeCl(3) in CH(2)Cl(2)/CH(3)CO(2)H to oxidize alkanes efficiently at room temperature. The oxidation can be made catalytic by using 2,6-dichloropyridine N-oxide as the terminal oxidant. The active intermediates in stoichiometric and catalytic oxidation are proposed to be [(O)(3)Os(VIII)N-Fe(III)] and [Cl(4)(O)Os(VIII)N-Fe(III)], respectively.