Chromium containing mesoporous molecular sieves MCM-41 were shown to be an efficient heterogeneous catalyst for the liquid-phase aerobic oxidation of various monoterpenic alkenes under mild solvent-free conditions. The material was prepared through a direct hydrothermal method and characterized by ICP-AES, N-2 adsorption-desorption, TEM, XRD, SAXS, and H-2-TPR techniques. Characterizations suggest that chromium introduced in MCM-41 is essentially incorporated in the silica framework, with no extraframework chromium oxides being detected. Various oxygenated monoterpenoids important for the flavor and fragrance industry were obtained with high combined selectivities (75-92%) at 30-40% substrate conversions. The oxidation of beta-pinene led almost exclusively to allylic mono-oxygenated derivatives, whereas limonene and cc-pinene gave both epoxides and allylic oxidation products. The catalyst undergoes no metal leaching and can be easily recovered and re-used. A silica-included chromium catalyst prepared through a conventional sol-gel method showed activity comparable with that of Cr-MCM-41: however, selectivity was much lower. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.