Oxidation of alcohols (benzyl alcohol, 1-phenylethanol and cinnamyl alcohol) using oxidized diamond (O-Dia)supported Pd catalyst was studied. The O-Dia supported catalyst exhibited a high catalytic activity among the support materials of Pd-loaded catalysts in the oxidation of benzyl alcohol at 85 C, showing TOFs of 850 h(-1). The addition of small amount of CeO2 to O-Dia supports further improved catalytic activity in the oxidation of 1-phenylethanol with molecular oxygen. The promotion effect of CeO2 was the suppression of acidic properties of the Pd/O-Dia, leading to dehydration and hydrogenolysis reactions of 1-phenylethanol. In addition, the Pd/CeO2/O-Dia catalyst showed a higher catalytic activity in the oxidation of various alcohols than that of Pd/O-Dia. Moreover, the basic metal oxide-promoted catalysts exhibited high catalytic activity in the dehydrogenation of 1-phenylethanol without molecular oxygen at 120 degrees C. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.