Solid superacids advantages

Many superacid-catalyzed reactions were found to be carried out advantageously not only using liquid superacids but also over solid superacids, including Nafion-H or certain zeolites. We extensively studied the catalytic activity of Nafion-H and related solid acid catalysts (including supported perfluorooctanesulfonic acid and its higher ho-... 

Solid acid catalysts such as mixed oxides (chalcides) have been used extensively for many years in the petroleum industry and organic synthesis. Their main advantage compared with liquid acid catalysts is the ease of separation from the reaction mixture, which allows continuous operation, as well as regeneration and reutilization of the catalyst. Furthermore, the heterogeneous solid catalysts can lead to high selectivity or specific activity. Due to the heterogeneity of solid superacids, accurate acidity measurements are difficult to carry out and to interpret. Up until now, the most useful way to estimate the acidity of a solid catalyst is to test its catalytic activity in well-known acid-catalyzed reactions. 

Solid superacidic catalysts can also be advantageously applied in miration with acetonecyanohydrin nitrate [29],... 

Because of the advantages of using solid superacidic catalysts in electrophilic aromatic nitration and in acid-catalyzed reactions in general, Olah et al. have examined the mercury (Il)-promoted azeotropic nitration of aromatics using Nafion-H solid superacidic catalyst [142]. Azeotropic removal of water accelerates the rate of reaction by mitigating the dilution of nitric acid in a static reaction system. The yield of nitroaromatics varies from 48-77% (Table XXVIII). 

Many acid-catalyzed reactions can be advantageously carried out using solid superacids instead of conventional acid systems. The reactions can be carried out in either the gaseous or the liquid phase. Using the example Nafion-H (a perfluoroalkane resin sulfonic acid, developed by DuPont) solid acid, several simple procedures were reported to carry out alkylation, transbromination, nitration, acetalization, hydration, and so on. 

There is good reason to believe that the potential of NMR studies of carbenium ions on solid metal halitks exceeds that of corresponding studies in superacid solutions. Of course the advantages of working in solids include Ae possibility of very low temperatures and the mass transport restrictions of frozen media. Thus, Mehre and Yannoni were able to characterize the sec-butyl cation in frozen SbF5 by NMR [20] and Schleyer and coworkers have obtained infrared evidence of the allyl cation in the same medium [21]. So far, we have been successful in every case in which we have tried to duplicate known solution carbenium ion chemistry on... 

The tendency in the past decades has been to replace them with solid acids (Figure 13.1). These solid acids could present important advantages, decreasing reactor and plant corrosion problems (with simpler and safer maintenance), and favoring catalyst regeneration and environmentally safe disposal. This is the case of the use of zeolites, amorphous sihco-aluminas, or more recently, the so-called superacid solids, that is, sulfated metal oxides, heteropolyoxometalates, or nation (Figure 13.1). It is clear that the well-known carbocation chemistry that occurs in liquid-acid processes also occurs on the sohd-acid catalysts (similar mechanisms have been proposed in both catalyst types) and the same process variables that control liquid-acid reactions also affect the solid catalyst processes. 

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