A simple, iron-catalyzed, pyridine-assisted hydrogen peroxide epoxidation system.

A simple and inexpensive system comprised of H(2)O(2)-pyridine-FeCl(3)·6H(2)O for the catalysis of olefin epoxidation was established. Intriguingly, the reactivity of this system greatly depends on the amounts of pyridine. Various substrates, including aromatic and aliphatic olefins, were epoxidized by this simple system in moderate to excellent yields.