Species defects methylation reactions

In the absence of propane, the interaction between methane and zeolite Zn/HBEA yields methylzinc (ZnCHj) and methoxide (ZnOCHj) species and formate fragments, which undergo further conversion into acetaldehyde and acetic acid (Fig. 29D). In the presence of benzene, only the formation of the methoxide ZnOCH is observed, which is apparently not oxidized by oxygen of the defected ZnO structure (Fig. 29E). At 823 K, benzene is methylated by ZnOCHj, yielding methyl-substituted aromatics, namely, toluene and xylenes (Fig. 29F). It was thereby found that methane participated in the methane-propane co-aromatization reaction hy alkylating the aromatic compounds that resulted from propane, as is illustrated hy Scheme 7. 

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