Tetramethylethylene을 저분자 올레핀의 모형으로 선정하고 산소를 산화제로 하여 chlorobenzene용매에서 산화실험을 하였다. 촉매로서는 cobalt-naphthenate를 사용하였으며 반응온도는 60 ℃로 하였다. 산화생성물들을 IR, NMR, 및 Mass spectrometer 및 가스크로마토그라피로 분석해본 결과 주생성물들은 2, 3,-dimethyl-2, 3,-epoxy-butane, 2, 3,-dimethyl-3-hydroperoxy-butene-1 및 2, 3-dimethyl-3-hydroxy-butene-1이었다. 파라핀 계열의 탄화수소를 액상 산화할 경우 초기생성물이 hydroperoxide인 것과는 달리 올레핀 계열의 탄화수소를 액상 산화할 경우 초기 생성물은 hydroperoxide와 함께 epoxide가 생성되며 alcohol, ketone 및 glycol 류는 이차생성물임이 반응기구로부터 설명되었다.
Epoxide의 선택도는 촉매농도가 증가함에 따라 감소하고 있으며 hydroperoxide의 선택도는 촉매농도의 증가에 따라 급격히 감소함을 발견하였다. Epoxide의 농도는 최고 45 %에 달하였다.

Tetramethylethylene, as a model of low molecular olefin, was oxidized by molecular oxygen in chlorobenzene with cobalt-naphthenate as a catalyst at 60 ℃. Main products was found to be 2, 3,-dimethyl-2, 3,-epoxy-butane, 2, 3-dimethyl-3-hydroxy-butene-1 and 2, 3-dimethyl-3-hydroperoxy-butene-1 by IR, NMR, Mass spectrometers, and gas chromatography. It was also confirmed that hydroperoxide and epoxide were primary products and that alcohols, ketones and glycol were secondary products in the oxidation of olefinic hydrocarbon, while hydroperoxide is the sole primary product in the oxidation of paraffinic hydrocarbon. The selectivity of the catalyst for yielding epoxide increases inversely with the concentration of cobalt-naphthenate up to 45 % and the catalyst selectivity for yielding hydroperoxide depends strongly on the concentration of the catalyst.