Acidity continued propene

In 1950 the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis was banned in Germany by the allied forces. Sinarol, a high paraffinic kerosene fraction sold by Shell, was used as a substitute. This ban coincided with the rapid development of the European petrochemical industry, and in due time Fischer-Tropsch synthesis applied to the production of paraffins became uneconomic anyway. After the war there was a steady worldwide increase in the demand for surfactants. In order to continually meet the demand for synthetic detergents, the industry was compelled to find a substitute for /z-paraffin. This was achieved by the oligomerization of the propene part of raffinate gases with phosphoric acid catalyst at 200°C and about 20 bars pressure to produce tetrapropene. Tetrapropene was inexpensive, comprising a defined C cut and an olefinic double bond. Instead of the Lewis acid, aluminum chloride, hydrofluoric acid could now be used as a considerably milder, more economical, and easier-to-handle alkylation catalyst [4],... 

A wide variety of new approaches to the problem of product separation in homogeneous catalysis has been discussed in the preceding chapters. Few of the new approaches has so far been commercialised, with the exceptions of a the use of aqueous biphasic systems for propene hydroformylation (Chapter 5) and the use of a phosphonium based ionic liquid for the Lewis acid catalysed isomerisation of butadiene monoxide to dihydrofuran (see Equation 9.1). This process has been operated by Eastman for the last 8 years without any loss or replenishment of ionic liquid [1], It has the advantage that the product is sufficiently volatile to be distilled from the reactor at the reaction temperature so the process can be run continuously with built in product catalyst separation. Production of lower volatility products by such a process would be more problematic. A side reaction leads to the conversion of butadiene oxide to high molecular weight oligomers. The ionic liquid has been designed to facilitate their separation from the catalyst (see Section 9.7)... 

A continuous procedure for the alkylation of mesitylene and anisole with supercritical propene, or propan-2-ol in supercritical carbon dioxide, with a heterogeneous polysiloxane-supported solid acid Deloxan catalyst has been reported giving 100% selectivity for monoalkylation of mesitylene with 50% conversion at 250 °C and 150 bar by propan-2-ol in supercritical carbon dioxide. p-Toluenesulfonic acid monohydrate has been demonstrated as an efficient catalyst for the clean alkylation of aromatics using activated alkyl halides, alkenes or tosylates under mild conditions. Cyclohexene, for example, reacts with toluene to give 100% cyclohexyltoluenes (o m p-29 18 53) under these circumstances. 

Friedel Crafts alkylation has been studied by Poliakoff in a continuous-flow reactor (Hitzler et al., 1998a). The reaction of mesitylene and anisole with propene or 2-propanol over a solid acid catalyst (based on a Deloxan support) in sc C02 provided exclusive formation of the monoalkylated products at 50% conversion. Use of the continuous-flow reactor prevents catalyst deactivation, and permits use of comparatively small reactors. The... 

The decomposition of isopropanol proceeds either via (A) dehydration to propene or (B) dehydrogenation to acetone. Both continuous- and pulse-flow measurements have shown that the reactions have similar rates on VI and V8, but (A) is faster than (B) on V8. Reaction (A) requires acid centers these are entirely removed when the soluble vanadium species are removed by isobutanol or NH4OH [28q],... 

The cationic nickel complex [ /3-allylNi(PR3)]+, already described by Wilke etal. [21], as an efficient catalyst precursor for alkene dimerization when dissolved in chlorinated organic solvents. It proved to be very active in acidic chloroaluminate ionic liquids. In spite of the strong potential Lewis acidity of the medium, a similar phosphine effect is observed. Biphasic regioselective dimerization of propylene into 2,3-dimethylbutenes can then be achieved in chloroaluminates. However, there is a competition for the phosphine between the soft nickel complex and the hard aluminum chloride coming from the dissociation of polynuclear chloroaluminate anions. Aromatic hydrocarbons, when added to the system, can act as competitive bases thus preventing the de-coordination of phosphine ligand from the nickel complex [22 b]. Performed in a continuous way, in IFP pilot plant facilities, dimerization of propene and/or butenes with this biphasic system (Difasol process) compares... 

Continuous Friedel-Crafts alkylation, with high selectivity, of mesitylene and ani-sole with propene or propan-2-ol in scCsHe or SCCO2 using a heterogeneous poly-siloxane solid acid catalyst (Deloxan, ASP 1/7) is described by Poliakoff et al. [52] (see Chapter 12). No comparison was made with the continuous alkylation in a conventional solvent and it is, therefore, diffiadt to judge the technical potential of this approach. 

Poliakoff et al. introduced the supercritical phase to the Friedel-Crafts alkylation reaction by using SCCO2 or by making propene, one of the reactants, the supercritical fluid [56]. This heterogeneous supercritical phase reaction was conducted continuously and the selectivity was very high if a solid acid Deloxan catalyst was utilized. 

A variety of ion exchange resins with strong and weak acid, weak base, and quaternary ammonium ion functionality are available in bead form well suited for filtration from reaction mixtures and for use in continuous flow processes. They have been used for >30 years in flow systems for water deionization. Sulfonic acid resins are already used on a large scale as catalysts for the addition of methanol to isobutylene to form methyl terr-butyl ether, for the hydration of propene to isopropyl alcohol, and for a variety of smaller scale processes. Tertiary amine resins have been used as catalysts for the addition of alcohols to isocyanates to form urethanes. The quaternary ammonium ion resins could be used as reagents with any of a large number of counter ions, and as catalysts in two and three phase reaction mixtures, although the author is not aware of any commercial process of this sort at present. 

Among the industrially relevant cyclic ethers tetrahydrojuran (THF) is by far the most important. THF is produced by condensation of 1,4-butandiol that is obtained from several feedstock basis (acetylene, propene, butadiene, and butane, see Scheme 5.3.4). 1,4-Dioxane is obtained by condensation of diethylene glycol that itself is obtained by the addition of water to ethylene oxide. The reaction is catalyzed by sulfuric acid (homogeneous catalysis) or by acidic ion-exchange resins (heterogeneous catalysis) and proceeds at about 160 °C with continuous distillative removal of water. 

Hitzler et al. (316) report the Friedel-Crafts alkylation of mesitylene (C6H3Me3) and anisole with propene or 2-propanol using a heterogeneous polysiloxane-supported solid acid catalyst (Degussa s Deloxan) in a small fixed-bed continuous reactor (10-ml volume) using SCF propene or CO2 as the reaction solvent. For the alkylation of mesitylene with propene at 160-180°C and 200 bar, yield of the monoalkylated product (l-isopropyl-2,4,6-trimethylbenzene) was only approximately 25% due to the formation of the dialkylated product as well as dimers and trimers of propene. Selectivity to the monoalkylated product was significantly higher (40% yield) for alkylation with 2-propanol in scCOa. 

Later, the CMRs were also used in an attempt to carry out homogeneous catalytic reactions for example, hydration of propene. Lapkin et al prepared a carbon membrane from a macroporous phenohc resin and constructed a CMR for the hydration reaction. In this gas phase continuous catalytic membrane reactor, the flat carbon membrane was used as a contactor for carrying out reactions at high temperature and pressure. In particular, the hydration of propene, catalyzed by an aqueous solution of phosphoric acid, was selected as a suitable model reaction. Olefin and water were fed separately in order to have the additional benefit of an increased alcohol concentration in the product stream because of the absence of steam in the propene feed. 

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