A catalytic system consisting of N,N-dimethyl-(4-(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-oxyl-4-piperidoxyl)butyl)dodecyl ammonium bromide (TEMPO-Q), CuI and 2,2'-bipyridine was established. This catalytic system (CuI/bpy/TEMPO-Q) showed high activity and good to excellent selectivity in the oxidative conversion of various alcohols to the corresponding nitriles with molecular oxygen as terminal oxidant and aqueous ammonia as nitrogen source under solvent-free conditions. Besides, the catalytic system also offers the advantages of simplified workup procedure. This protocol thus represents a greener pathway for the synthesis of nitriles from alcohols. [GRAPHICS] .