The selective liquid phase oxidation of cyclohexene to 2-cyclohexe-1-one and 1,2-cyclohexanediol has been investigated over gold nanoparticles (GNPs) with molecular oxygen in a solvent-free condition. The gold nanoparticles were immobilized on thiolated chitosan derivative (TChD), by grafting thiol groups on the support. The catalyst was characterized by XPS, N-2 adsorption/desorption, TEM, FT-IR and UV-vis spectroscopy. TEM results show that the majority of Au particles have diameters in the range of 3-6 nm. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) revealed the coexistence of both oxidized and metallic gold species on the surface of TChD. The results show that the catalytic performance of GNPs/TChD is quite remarkable and the catalytic activity over recycled catalyst remains at a high level after at least 4 cycles. Activity tests were carried out in an autoclave at 80 degrees C without any solvent. In order to obtain maximum conversion, the reaction parameters such as reaction temperature and time were optimized. Under optimized conditions, a maximum of 87% conversion and 70% selectivity was achieved with the GNPs/TChD catalyst. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.