Bulk type I catalysis

Pseudoliquid-phase catalysis (bulk type I catalysis) was reported in 1979, and bulk type II behavior in 1983. In the 1980s, several new large-scale industrial processes started in Japan based on applications of heteropoly catalysts that had been described before (5, 6, 72) namely, oxidation of methacro-lein (1982), hydration of isobutylene (1984), hydration of n-butene (1985), and polymerization of tetrahydrofuran (1987). In addition, there are a few small- to medium-scale processes (9, 10). Thus the level of research activity in heteropoly catalysis is very high and growing rapidly. 

Bulk type I catalysis was found in acid catalysis with the acid forms and some salts at relatively low temperatures. The reactant molecules are absorbed between the polyanions (not in a polyanion) in the ionic crystal by replacing water of crystallization or expanding the lattice, and reaction occurs there. The polyanion structure itself is usually intact. The solid behaves like a solution and the reaction medium is three-dimensional. This is called pseudoliquid catalysis (Sections l.A and VI). The reaction rate is proportional to the volume of the catalyst in the ideal case the rate of an acid-catalyzed reaction is proportional to the total number of acidic groups in the solid bulk. 

These three classes of catalysis are distinctly different from each other in the ideal cases. But the extent of the contribution of the inner bulk of the catalyst depends on the rate of the catalytic reaction relative to the rate of diffusion of reactant and product molecules in bulk type I catalysis and on the rate of reaction relative to the rate of diffusion of redox carriers for the bulk type II catalysis. 

In this section, these influences will be described. Besides the acidic properties, the absorption properties of solid heteropolyacids for polar molecules are often critical in determining the catalytic function in pseudoliquid phase behavior. This is a new concept in heterogeneous catalysis by inorganic materials and is described separately in Section VI. With this behavior, reactions catalyzed by solid heteropoly compounds can be classified into three types surface type, bulk type I, and bulk type II (Sections VII and IX). Softness of the heteropolyanion is important for high catalytic activity, although the concept has not yet been sufficiently clarified. 

There are three prototypes of heterogeneous catalysis with heteropoly compounds as shown in Fig. 2 [4, 5]. Actual cases could be intermediate and vary by the kind of heteropoly compounds, reacting molecules, and reaction conditions. Ordinary heterogeneous catalysis is the surface type, where the catalytic reaction takes place on a two-dimensional surface. Bulk type I is the reaction in the pseudoliquid phase. The secondary structure (Fig. lb) of certain HPAs is flexible and polar molecules are readily absorbed in interstitial positions of the solid bulk to form the pseudoliquid phase. Bulk type II has been demonstrated for several catalytic oxidations at relatively high temperatures. The reaction fields for the bulk types are three-dimensional. 

Figure 2. Three types of heterogeneous catalysis for heteropoly compounds (a) surface type (b) bulk type I (pseudoliquid) (c) bulk type II.

It has been demonstrated that three different types of catalysis are possible for solid HPAs (211,212) (a) surface type, (6) pseudoliquid or bulk type (I), and (c) bulk type (II) catalysis (Fig. 19). In surface-type catalysis, the catalytic events occur, as for many other solid catalysts, on the outer surface and consequently, the reaction rate for acid-catalyzed reactions should be, in principle, proportional... 

The bulk-type catalysis has been proved by several experiments such as i) a transient response analysis of the dehydration of 2-propanol, ii) a phase transition of the pseudo-liquid phase, and iii) the reactivity order of alcohols which was reversed depending on the partial pressure. Unusual pressure dependence as well as direct observation by MAS-NMR of reaction intermediates such as protonated alcohol and alkoxide have been reported for pseudo-liquid phase. ... 

Selectivity in oxidation catalysis has been reviewed for conventional catalysts used for the production of bulk chemicals and epoxidations. The point of activation of the substrate is identified as a key factor identifying three mechanistic features. These are (i) activation of the weakest C-H bond in a substrate, (ii) activation of the strongest C-H bond and (iii) electrophilic attack in olefins. Key features of each type of reaction are identified and new catalyst types needed to break through existing selectivity barriers are discussed. 

Dijfusivity and tortuosity affect resistance to diffusion caused by collision with other molecules (bulk diffusion) or by collision with the walls of the pore (Knudsen diffusion). Actual diffusivity in common porous catalysts is intermediate between the two types. Measurements and correlations of diffusivities of both types are Known. Diffusion is expressed per unit cross section and unit thickness of the pellet. Diffusion rate through the pellet then depends on the porosity and a tortuosity factor x that accounts for increased resistance of crooked and varied-diameter pores. Effective diffusion coefficient is Deff = Dtheo / C- Empirical porosities range from 0.3 to 0.7, tortuosities from 2 to 7. In the absence of other information, Satterfield Heterogeneous Catalysis in Practice, McGraw-Hill, 1991) recommends taking i = 0.5 and T = 4. In this area, clearly, precision is not a feature. 

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