Alumina commercial synthesis

The application of monolith catalysts to a variety of commercial synthesis processes has been investigated because of the potentially smaller size and lower pressure drop through the chemical reactors. One of the earliest of these investigations was for methanation, the chemical reaction between carbon monoxide and hydrogen to produce methane selectively. In a detailed study [14] a comparative evaluation involved the use of nickel catalyst on (1) spherical alumina pellets (0.32-cm diameter), (2) alumina washcoated (10-20% by weight) cordierite monoliths with 31- and 46-cells (square)/cm density, (3) an alumina... 

Acid-Gatalyzed Synthesis. The acid-catalysed reaction of alkenes with hydrogen sulfide to prepare thiols can be accompHshed using a strong acid (sulfuric or phosphoric acid) catalyst. Thiols can also be prepared continuously over a variety of soHd acid catalysts, such as seoHtes, sulfonic acid-containing resin catalysts, or aluminas (22). The continuous process is utilised commercially to manufacture the more important thiols (23,24). The acid-catalysed reaction is commonly classed as a Markownikoff addition. Examples of two important industrial processes are 2-methyl-2-propanethiol and 2-propanethiol, given in equations 1 and 2, respectively. 

Some advances have been made in the Paal-Knorr synthesis of pyrroles by the condensation of primary amines with 1,4-dicarbonyl species. For instance, a new synthetic route to monosubstituted succinaldehydes allows for the facile preparation of 3-substituted pyrroles <96TL4099>. Additionally, a general method for the synthesis of 1-aminopyiroles has been devised by the condensation of commercially available 2,2,2-trichloroethyl- or 2-(tri-methylsilyl)ethylhydrazine with 1,4-dicarbonyl compounds <96JOCl 180>. A related route to such compounds involves the reaction of a-halohydrazones with p-dicarbonyl compounds <96H(43)1447>. Finally, hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) can be utilized as the amine component in the Paal-Knorr synthesis in the presence of alumina, and this modification has been employed in the synthesis of tm azaprostacyclin analog <96S1336>. 

Several other important commercial processes need to be mentioned. They are (not necessarily in the order of importance) the low pressure methanol process, using a copper-containing catalyst which was introduced in 1972 the production of acetic add from methanol over RhI catalysts, which has cornered the market the methanol-to-gasoline processes (MTG) over ZSM-5 zeolite, which opened a new route to gasoline from syngas and ammoxidation of propene over mixed-oxide catalysts. In 1962, catalytic steam reforming for the production of synthesis gas and/or hydrogen over nickel potassium alumina catalysts was commercialized. 

Besides supported (transition) metal catalysts, structure sensitivity can also be observed with bare (oxidic) support materials, too. In 2003, Hinrichsen et al. [39] investigated methanol synthesis at 30 bar and 300 °C over differently prepared zinc oxides, namely by precipitation, coprecipitation with alumina, and thermolysis of zinc siloxide precursor. Particle sizes, as determined by N2 physisorpt-ion and XRD, varied from 261 nm for a commercial material to 7.0 nm for the thermolytically obtained material. Plotting the areal rates against BET surface areas (Figure 3) reveals enhanced activity for the low surface area zinc... 

More recently, using the same methodology as described above, a commercially available alumina-bound zeolite Beta (80 wt %) was tested for ethylbenzene synthesis (28). A first-order rate constant of 0.29 cm /g-sec was obtained. A 16% zeolite Beta in TUD-1 catalyst also had a rate constant of 0.30 cm ... 

The complete oil fraction from FT synthesis was treated over bauxite, a natural silica-alumina, at a temperature around 400°C. This bauxite treatment step was a commercial process, called the Perco process, which was used as a sulfur removal step in oil refineries. The acid-catalyzed conversion of the syncrude over bauxite... 

Vinyl octanoate was obtained from TCI (Tokyo, Japan). All other chemicals with the exception of the zeolite beta are available from Sigma Aldrich. The synthesis of a particularly active modification of low-alumina zeolite beta has been described by us. Commercial material, available as samples from, for example, Zeolyst or Siidchemie can be used, but because of excessive acidity may result in up to 15 % of styrene formation. 

This work was done in collaboration with Professor Hiroshi Yoneyama of Osaka University [124], The procedure used to prepare the LiMu204 tubules is shown schematically in Fig. 21. A commercially available alumina filtration membrane (Anopore, Whatman) was used as the template. Alumina is especially suited for this application because of its high porosity, monodispersity of pore size, and the fact that it can be heated to high temperature without degradation. This membrane contains 200-nm-diameter pores, is 60 p,m thick, and has a porosity of 0.6. A 1.5 cm X 1.5 cm piece of this membrane was mounted on a Pt plate (2 cm X 2 cm) by applying a strip of plastic adhesive tape (also 2 cm X 2 cm NICHIBAN VT-19) across the upper face of the membrane. The Pt plate will serve as the current collector for the LiMn204 battery electrode material. The strip of tape, which will be subsequently removed, had a 1.0 cm circular hole punched in it, which defined the area of the membrane used for the template synthesis of the LiMn204. 

The stmctural complexity and biological activity of the cyathane family of diterpenes has stimulated considerable interest from synthetic chemists, as reflected in the number and diversity of approaches reported thus far [42]. Our own strategy for cyathane synthesis is based on a rhodium-catalyzed [5+2] cycloaddition. The precursor for this reaction was fashioned ultimately from commercially available and inexpensive (S)-(-)-limonene. Treatment of the ketone 139 with 5 mol% [RhCl(CO)2]2 in 1,2-dichloro-ethane gave cycloadduct 140 (Scheme 13.14) in 90% yield and in analytically pure form after simple filtration through a plug of neutral alumina [43]. 

It should be mentioned that alternative possibilities to prepare similar membranes include the use of a porous alumina membrane as matrix, with the titania nanotubes grown in the channels. Nanoporous alumina membranes are commercial products, also synthesized by anodic oxidation. The commercial Whatman Corporation anodic membrane has holes of about 20-nm diameter at the top of the membrane and about 200-nm diameter at the bottom of membrane. Within these pores Ti02 nanotubes fabricated by template synthesis and water vapour hydrolysis could be grown, but non-uniform membrane characteristics are obtained due to the non-uniform pores of the commercial alumina... 

Supported Cu-Pd catalysts have the potential to provide new alternatives to conventional commercial methanol synthesis catalysts (based on the Cu-ZnO-alumina system). Cu-Pd catalysts are also of industrial interest in hydrogenolysis and CO oxidation (Bulatov 1995). To interpret the catalyst behaviour and selectivity, including CO hydrogenation, a fundamental understanding of the structure, surface structure and stability of the phases in this system is required. The Cu-Pd phase diagram indicates that at temperatures greater than 600 °C, Cu... 

Double-bond isomerization was once used in the multistep synthesis of isoprene developed by Goodyear.266-268 2-Methyl-1-pentene produced by the dimerization of propylene was isomerized to 2-methyl-2-pentene over a silica-alumina catalyst at 100°C. The product was cracked to isoprene and methane. Because of the lower cost of isoprene isolated from naphtha or gas oil-cracking streams, synthetic isoprene processes presently are not practiced commercially. 

Ammonia synthesis catalysts have traditionally been based on iron and have been made by the reduction of magnetite (Fe304). The difference between different commercially available products lies in optimized levels of metal oxide promoters that are included within the magnetite structure. These metal oxides promote activity and improve the thermal stability of the catalyst. Typical promoters are alumina (AI2O3X potassium oxide (K2O), and calcium oxide (CaO). The interactions between the many components in the catalyst can radically affect 1) the initial reducibility, 2) the level of catalyst activity that is achieved, 3) the long-term catalyst performance and 4) the long-term catalyst stability204. 

The metals, as gauze or foil, and especially on supports such as charcoal or alumina onto which the metal salts are absorbed and reduced in situ under specified conditions, are widely used as catalysts for an extremely large range of reactions in the gas phase or in solution. One of the larger uses of Pt is for the reforming of hydrocarbons. Commercial uses in homogeneous reactions are fewer, but palladium is used in the Smidt process and Rh in hydroformylation and in acetic acid synthesis. 

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