Palladium catalysts acetylene hydrogenation

Until 1958 no ethylene plant had used a tail-end palladium catalyst to hydrogenate all of the acetylene formed in the steam cracker. This was an attractive possibility, however, and many of the large new US plants built in the 1960s were designed in this way. The less efficient front-end nickel and iron catalysts were soon obsolete. Several significant changes followed the use of tail-end catalysts ... 

The presence of other functional groups ia an acetylenic molecule frequendy does not affect partial hydrogenation because many groups such as olefins are less strongly adsorbed on the catalytic site. Supported palladium catalysts deactivated with lead (such as the Liadlar catalyst), sulfur, or quinoline have been used for hydrogenation of acetylenic compound to (predominantiy) cis-olefins. 

Troublesome amounts of C and Q acetylenes are also produced in cracking. In the butadiene and isoprene recovery processes, the acetylenes in the feed are either hydrogenated, polymerized, or extracted and burned. Acetylene hydrogenation catalyst types include palladium on alumina, and some non-noble metals. 

The increase of selectivity in consecutive reactions in favor of the intermediate product may be sometimes extraordinarily high. Thus, for example, in the already cited hydrogenation of acetylene on a platinum and a palladium catalyst (45, 46) or in the hydrogenation or deuteration of 2-butynes on a palladium catalyst (57, 58), high selectivities in favor of reaction intermediates (alkenes) are obtained, even though their hydrogenation is in itself faster than the hydrogenation of alkynes. 

Quite recently Yasumori el al. (43) have reported the results of their studies on the effect that adsorbed acetylene had on the reaction of ethylene hydrogenation on a palladium catalyst. The catalyst was in the form of foil, and the reaction was carried out at 0°C with a hydrogen pressure of 10 mm Hg. The velocity of the reaction studied was high and no poisoning effect was observed, though under the conditions of the experiment the hydride formation could not be excluded. The obstacles for this reaction to proceed could be particularly great, especially where the catalyst is a metal present in a massive form (as foil, wire etc.). The internal strains... 

In support of the concept that acetylenes form tt complexes with a single surface atom of the catalyst, McQuillin el al. (39) have cited the parellelism between the effect of substances such as amines and phosphines as inhibitors for the hydrogenation of butynediols to butenediols on a palladium catalyst with the ability of these same substances to form complexes with metals of the class to which palladium belongs (40). 

Palladium catalysts are more often modified for special selectivities than platinum catalysts. Palladium prepared by reduction of palladium chloride with sodium borohydride Procedure 4, p. 205) is suitable for the reduction of unsaturated aldehydes to saturated aldehydes [i7]. Palladimn on barium sulfate deactivated with sulfur compounds, most frequently the so-called quinoline-5 obtained by boiling quinoline with sulfur [34], is suitable for the Rosenmund reduction [i5] (p. 144). Palladium on calcium carbonate deactivated by lead acetate Lindlar s catalyst) is used for partial hydrogenation of acetylenes to cw-alkenes [36] (p. 44). 

Addition of acetylene to acetone results in the formation of 2-methyl-3-butyn-2-ol, which is hydrogenated to 2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol in the presence of a palladium catalyst. This product is converted into its acetoacetate derivative with diketene [38] or with ethyl acetoacetate [39]. The acetoacetate undergoes rearrangement when heated (Carroll reaction) to give 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one ... 

Acetylene hydrogenation. Selective hydrogenation of acetylene to ethylene is performed at 200°C over sulfided nickel catalysts or carbon-monoxide-poisoned palladium on alumina catalyst. Without the correct amount of poisoning, ethane would be the product. Continuous feed of sulfur or carbon monoxide must occur or too much hydrogen is chemisorbed on the catalyst surface. Complex control systems analyze the amount of acetylene in an ethylene cracker effluent and automatically adjust the poisoning level to prepare the catalyst surface for removing various quantities of acetylene with maximum selectivity. 

The nature of the unsaturated hydrocarbon has a very important role in the sulfur action Berenblyum et al. (83) have reactivated a palladium catalyst, poisoned with thiols, through the interaction with phenylacethyl-ene the presence of acetylenics together with low levels of sulfur even activate the nickel sites activity for acetylene hydrogenation (84, 85). 

Besides the examples described above, many other palladium catalyst systems have also been described, mostly in patents, to be effective for partial hydrogenation of acetylenes. They include Pd-C-Cu(OAc)258,59 Pd-Al203-Cu(0Ac)2 with hydrazine hydrate,59 and Pd-C- plus Pd-CaC03-Zn(OAc)2-Et2NH.60... 

The product of interest is ethylene and this is contaminated with ethane and acetylene. The most common practice is for acetylene to be selectively hydrogenated to ethylene using supported palladium catalysts ... 

It was shown that with a Pd/C catalyst in the liquid phase terminal triple bonds were saturated faster than internal ones, and both hydrogenated faster than terminal or internal double bonds in competitive processes (Eqn. 16.5). Further, alkene isomerization generally does not take place over palladium catalysts when alkynes are present. This selective hydrogenation depends on the stronger adsorption of an alkyne compared to an alkene. It is also possible that steric factors can influence the selectivity in the competitive semihydrogenation of an acetylene and an olefmic group in the same molecule. When the double bond and the triple bond are c/s to each other as in 7, selective adsorption of the acetylene... 

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