The direct hydroxylation of benzene with hydrogen peroxide was studied over a MFI-structure titaniumsilica based catalyst denoted as TS-PT (TM) (the trade mark of PQ Corporation). The reaction was carried out in a three phase slurry reactor system under atmospheric pressure. The catalytic activity of this catalyst was found to be higher than that of the conventionally synthesized TS-1 under the same conditions. These findings can be correlated to enlarged BET surface, larger pore diameter and higher amount of mesopores in the material as well as defects of the zeolitic structure. The effects of temperature, stirring speed, molar ratio of benzene/H2O2, volume of added water, and catalyst weight on catalytic performance were investigated. Under mild conditions, such as 343 K and atmospheric pressure, an excellent overall phenol yield could be achieved over TS-PQr (TM). (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.