Its great reactivity with lactols makes the Fétizon oxidation a useful method to obtain lactones from a diol.
[4] The rate limiting step of this reaction is proposed to be the initial association of the alcohol to the silver ions.
[5] Additional polar functionalities of the reactant should also be avoided whenever possible as even the presence of an alkene can sometimes reduce the reactivity of a substrate 50 fold.
[5] Tertiary alcohols lacking an alpha hydrogen are selected against and generally do not oxidize in the presence of Fétizon's reagent.
However, increasing the amount of celite past 900 grams per mole of silver(I) carbonate begins to slow the reaction due to dilution effects.
A very attractive property of Fétizon's reagent is its ability to be separated from the reaction product by physically filtering it out and washing with benzene.
[15] As Fétizon's oxidation is a neutral reaction, acid and base sensitive protecting groups are also compatible with the reagent and by products generated.
[16] Halohydrins that possess a trans stereochemistry have been demonstrated to form epoxides and transposed products in the presence of Fétizon's reagent.