Enhanced para-Xylene Selectivity in the Toluene Alkylation Reaction at Ultralow Contact Time

Dramatic improvements in the para-xylene selectivity of the toluene alkylation reaction can be effected by operating the catalytic reaction at ultralow contact time. Unexpectedly, the rate of alkylation is sustained, while unwanted side reactions are suppressed. By demonstrating that contact time di...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the American Chemical Society 2005-04, Vol.127 (14), p.5020-5021
Main Authors: Breen, John, Burch, Robbie, Kulkarni, Manisha, Collier, Paul, Golunski, Stan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Catalysis
Catalytic reactions
Chemistry
Exact sciences and technology
General and physical chemistry
Theory of reactions, general kinetics. Catalysis. Nomenclature, chemical documentation, computer chemistry
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Dramatic improvements in the para-xylene selectivity of the toluene alkylation reaction can be effected by operating the catalytic reaction at ultralow contact time. Unexpectedly, the rate of alkylation is sustained, while unwanted side reactions are suppressed. By demonstrating that contact time directly influences the fate of para-xylene, which is known to form and diffuse preferentially within the zeolite catalyst, we conclude that external mass transfer is a key parameter in controlling selectivity. Even non-optimized catalysts can be made to achieve near-perfect selectivity, without sacrificing conversion.
ISSN:0002-7863
1520-5126
DOI:10.1021/ja046421o