Regioselective nitration of o-xylene to 4-nitro-o-xylene using nitric acid over solid acid catalysts

The regioselective nitration of o-xylene to 4-nitro-o-xylene (4-NOX) has been studied in the liquid and vapor phase over zeolites H-beta, H-ZSM-5 and silica supported molybdenum oxide (MoO₃/SiO₂) catalysts. Zeolite H-beta showed the maximum conversion of 28% and 63% selectivity for 4-NOX in liquid phase nitration at 70 °C with 70% HNO₃. The conversion increased to 65% when the reaction was carried out in vapor phase at 150 °C using dilute 30% HNO₃. The formation of α-methylphenyl nitromethane by alkyl nitration in liquid phase was decreased in vapor phase reaction. The formation of oxidation products was also decreased in vapor phase reaction with minor amounts of dinitro and ipso-products. The influence of experimental parameters such as temperature, nitric acid concentration and WHSV on conversion and selectivity has been investigated. The use of dilute nitric acid and the selective formation of 4-NOX using dilute HNO₃ makes this process environmental friendly with a potential for commercialization.     

Synthesis of sulfonated rubber ionomers by the ring‐opening reaction of epoxidized styrene–butadiene rubber,their characterization,and their properties

A novel method for the synthesis of the sulfonate ionomer of styrene‐co‐butadiene rubber (SBR) was developed. SBR was first epoxidized by performic acid formed from hydrogen peroxide and formic acid in situ in solution, and this was followed by a ring‐opening reaction with an aqueous solution of NaHSO₃. The optimum conditions for the epoxidation of SBR in the presence of a phase‐transfer catalyst and for the ring‐opening reaction of epoxidized SBR with an aqueous solution of NaHSO₃ were studied. During the epoxidation of SBR, a phase‐transfer catalyst, such as poly(ethylene glycol), could enhance the conversion of double bonds to epoxy groups. During the ring‐opening reaction, both the phase‐transfer catalyst and ring‐opening catalyst were necessary to enhance the conversion of the epoxy groups to ionic groups. The addition of Na₂SO₃ to the reaction mixture was important to obtain 100% conversion. The products were characterized with Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry, ¹H‐NMR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). DSC showed that the sodium sulfonate SBR ionomer possessed a dissociation temperature of ionic domains at 110°C, which appeared as black spots under TEM, after the sodium ions of the ionomer were substituted by lead ions. Some properties of the sodium ionomer, such as the water absorbency, oil absorbency, and dilute solution behavior, were studied. With increasing ionic groups, the water absorbency of the ionomer increased, whereas the oil absorbency decreased. The dilute solution viscosity of the ionomer increased abruptly with increasing ionic group content. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 3090–3096, 2006     

Catalytic conversion of postconsumer PE/PP waste into hydrocarbons using the FCC process with an equilibrium FCC commercial catalyst

A mixture of postconsumer polyolefin waste (PE/PP) was pyrolyzed over cracking catalysts using a fluidizing reaction system similar to the fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) process operating isothermally at ambient pressure. Experiments carried out with various catalysts gave good yields of valuable hydrocarbons with differing selectivity in the final products dependent on reaction conditions. Greater product selectivity was observed with a commercial FCC equilibrium catalyst (Ecat‐F1) with more than 50 wt % olefins products in the C₃‐C₆ range. A kinetic model based on a lumping reaction scheme for the observed products and catalyst coking deactivations has been investigated. The model gave a good representation of experiment results. Moreover, this model provides the benefits of lumping product selectivity, in each reaction step, in relation to the performance of the FCC equilibrium catalyst used, the effect of reaction temperature, and the particle size selected. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Influence of the catalyst surface area on the activity and stability of Au/CeO2 catalysts for the low-temperature water gas shift reaction

The influence of the support surface area on the activity and stability/deactivation of Au/CeO₂ catalysts (2.7 wt% Au) in the water gas shift reaction in dilute water gas were investigated by kinetic measurements and in situ Diffuse Reflectance IR spectroscopy. For ceria support surface areas between 24 and 284 m² g⁻¹, the gold particle size is independent on the catalyst surface area (about 2.1 nm) up to 188 m² g⁻¹, and we found increased amounts of (i) Auⁿ⁺, (ii) Ce³⁺, (iii) OH groups, and (iv) carbon containing adsorbed side products such as formates and carbonates for increasing surface area supports. Consequences of these results on the mechanistic understanding of the reaction are discussed.     

Effects of CO Atmosphere on the Pyrolysis of a Typical Lignite

To reveal the effect mechanism of CO atmosphere on coal pyrolysis, a study on raw and demineralized lignite was carried out in a horizontal tube furnace under N₂ and CO/N₂ atmosphere. CO had a negligible effect on the char yield at low temperatures, whereas it enhances the char yield at temperatures higher than 550 °C. The release of tar was higher in the presence of CO above 450 °C because of more free radicals, which reduced low‐temperature crosslinking, and higher selectivity of hydroxyl groups to phenols in the CO‐containing atmosphere. The yields of CO₂ and H₂ increased, water and CO yields decreased under CO/N₂ atmosphere. Light hydrocarbon gases were not affected by changing the reaction atmosphere. The difference between product yields from raw and demineralized coal confirmed that the catalysis of inherent minerals had a great catalytic effect on the water‐gas shift reaction and Boudouard reaction.     

The Effect of Process Parameters on the Pervaporation of Alcohols through Organophilic Membranes

Abstract

Several organophilic membranes were utilized to selectively permeate ethanol, n-butanol, and t-butanol from dilute aqueous mixtures using pervaporation (PV). Poly[1-(trimethylsilyl)-1-propyne] (PTMSP) membranes were utilized to investigate the effect of temperature, pressure, and start-up/transient time on the separation of aqueous ethanol mixtures. Results indicate optimal ethanol selectivity and flux at the lowest permeate-side pressure. Increased temperature significantly enhanced the productivity of PTMSP, but extended operation of the PTMSP membranes at high temperatures resulted in flux degradation. Two other hydrophobic membranes, poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) and a poly(methoxy siloxane) (PMS) composite, were used to separate n-butanol and t-butanol from dilute aqueous mixtures. The effect of feed concentration on the flux and selectivity was investigated. Both membranes were found to be more permeable to n-butanol than t-butanol. The PDMS membrane was found to be more effective than the PMS membrane in terms of flux and selectivity. The effect of membrane thickness on water permeation and on organic selectivity was also studied using the PDMS membrane.     

Transfer hydrogenation and transfer hydrogenolysis: XII. Selective hydrogenation of fatty acid methyl esters by various hydrogen donors

The selective hydrogenation of methyl linoleate was studied using various organic compounds as hydrogen sources in the presence of homogeneous and metallic palladium catalysts. Complete selectivity to monoenes and relatively little formation of isolatedtrans double bonds were realized by the hydrogen transfer from L-ascorbic acid at 47% conversion of starting material to hydrogenation products. The hydrogenation bytrans-1,2-cyclohexanediol catalyzed by RuH₂(PPh₃)₄ also showed rather high selectivity tocis-monoenes. In the reaction catalyzed by RuH₂(PPh₃)₄, also showed rather high selectivity tocis-monoenes. In the reaction catalyzed by RuH₂(PPh₃)₄, the presence of these hydroxy compounds increased the isomerization of methyl elaidate tocis-monoenes.     

Aromatic Production from Catalytic Fast Pyrolysis of Biomass-Derived Feedstocks

The conversion of biomass compounds to aromatics by thermal decomposition in the presence of catalysts was investigated using a pyroprobe analytical pyrolyzer. The first step in this process is the thermal decomposition of the biomass to smaller oxygenates that then enter the catalysts pores where they are converted to CO, CO₂, water, coke and volatile aromatics. The desired reaction is the conversion of biomass into aromatics, CO₂ and water with the undesired products being coke and water. Both the reaction conditions and catalyst properties are critical in maximizing the desired product selectivity. High heating rates and high catalyst to feed ratio favor aromatic production over coke formation. Aromatics with carbon yields in excess of 30 molar carbon% were obtained from glucose, xylitol, cellobiose, and cellulose with ZSM-5 (Si/Al = 60) at the optimal reactor conditions. The aromatic yield for all the products was similar suggesting that all of these biomass-derived oxygenates go through a common intermediate. At lower catalyst to feed ratios volatile oxygenates are formed including furan type compounds, acetic acid and hydroxyacetaldehyde. The product selectivity is dependent on both the size of the catalyst pores and the nature of the active sites. Five catalysts were tested including ZSM-5, silicalite, beta, Y-zeolite and silica–alumina. ZSM-5 had the highest aromatic yields (30% carbon yield) and the least amount of coke. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Application of chitosan solutions gelled by melB tyrosinase to water‐resistant adhesives

An investigation was undertaken on the application of dilute chitosan solutions gelled by melB tyrosinase‐catalyzed reaction with 3,4‐dihydroxyphenethylamine (dopamine). The tyrosinase‐catalyzed reaction with dopamine conferred water‐resistant adhesive properties to the semi‐dilute chitosan solutions. The viscosity of the chitosan solutions highly increased by the tyrosinase‐catalyzed quinone conversion and the subsequent nonenzymatic reactions of o‐quinones with amino groups of the chitosan chains. The viscosity of chitosan solutions highly increased in shorter reaction times by addition of melB tyrosinase. Therefore, in this study, the gelation of a chitosan solution was carried out without poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), which was added for the gelation of chitosan solutions using mushroom tyrosinase. The highly viscous, gel‐like modified chitosan materials were allowed to spread onto the surfaces of the glass slides, which were tightly lapped together and were held under water. Tensile shear adhesive strength of over 400 kPa was observed for the modified chitosan samples. An increase in either amino group concentration of the chitosan solutions or molecular mass of the chitosan samples used effectively led to an increase in adhesive strength of the glass slides. Adhesive strength obtained by chitosan materials gelled enzymatically was higher than that obtained by a chitosan gel prepared with glutaraldehyde as a chemical crosslinking agent. In addition, the use of melB tyrosinase led to a sharp increase in adhesive strength in shorter reaction times without other additives such as PEG. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Epoxidation of Styrene by Anhydrous H2O2 over TS-1 and γ-Al2O3 Catalysts: Effect of Reaction Water, Poisoning of Acid Sites and Presence of Base in the Reaction Mixture

The styrene conversion and product (viz. styrene oxide, phenyl acetaldehyde, benzaldehyde) selectivity in the liquid-phase epoxidation of styrene by H₂O₂ (H₂O₂/styrene = 2) over TS-1 (Si/Ti = 80) and -Al₂O₃ are strongly influenced by the presence of water and/or base (viz. urea and pyridine) in the reaction mixture. The TS-1 showed high styrene conversion activity but no epoxide selectivity in the absence of any base. When anhydrous H₂O₂ (24% H₂O₂ in ethyl acetate), with the continuous removal of the reaction water (using the DeanStark trap), was used instead of 50% aqueous H₂O₂, both the conversion and epoxide yield are increased drastically for the -Al₂O₃, whereas for the TS-1, the increase in the conversion was quite small and there was also no improvement in the epoxide selectivity and/or yield. However, when urea or pyridine was added in the reaction mixture, the epoxide selectivity for both the catalysts was increased depending on the concentration of the base added; the increase in the selectivity was very large for the TS-1 but small for the -Al₂O₃. Poisoning of the acid sites of the -Al₂O₃ by the chemisorbed ammonia or pyridine (at 100 °C) caused a small decrease in the conversion, but it also caused a large decrease in the epoxide selectivity. However, the pyridine poisoning of the TS-1 caused a little beneficial effect, a small increase in the epoxide selectivity. The ammonia poisoning of the TS-1, however, resulted in a small decrease in the conversion with no improvement in the epoxide selectivity. As compared to the TS-1, the -Al₂O₃ catalyst showed a much better performance in the epoxidation by anhydrous H₂O₂ with the continuous removal of the reaction water. However, the reaction water, if not removed continuously, is detrimental to the -Al₂O₃, causing a large decrease in the catalytic activity and selectivity for styrene oxide but an increase in the selectivity for benzaldehyde.     

Enhancement of activity and selectivity in lipase‐catalyzed transesterification in ionic liquids by the use of additives

BACKGROUND: Seven ionic liquids (ILs) based on 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium cation in combination with hexafluorophosphate and bis{(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl}imide anions were tested as reaction media for lipase-catalyzed transesterification in low water conditions. With the aim of improving the activity and/or selectivity of the lipase, various treatments were applied to ionic liquid media such as equilibration with aqueous solutions of salts, NaHCO₃ or Na₂CO₃, or the addition of a catalytic amount of a non-reactive organic base to the reaction mixture, triethylamine. RESULTS: The treated ionic liquids were shown to be excellent media for lipase-catalyzed ester synthesis by transesterification compared with conventional organic solvents, such as n-hexane. All treatments were found to enhance the synthetic activity of the enzyme, the best results being achieved with the addition of triethylamine. The addition of a catalytic amount of this base to the ILs resulted in a significant increase in both the synthetic activity and selectivity values. For instance, the synthetic activity in [emim⁺][TfN₂⁻] was enhanced more than 12 times and the selectivity increased from 86% to 95% when triethylamine was used. CONCLUSION: These treatments could be easy-to-use approaches to improve the efficiency of enzymatic reactions in ionic liquids when the reaction does not proceed smoothly. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry     

Regeneration of Lamina TS-1 Catalyst in the Epoxidation of Propylene with Hydrogen Peroxide

The deactivation and regeneration of the lamina titanium silicalite (TS-1) catalyst for the epoxidation of propylene with dilute H₂O₂was investigated in a fixed-bed reactor. In the scale-up experiment, the dosage of the lamina TS-1 catalyst is 2. 5 kg, after 1000 h reaction the catalyst still exhibits good performance and further increases the reaction time, the conversion of H₂O₂begins to decrease. TG and BET analyses of the deactivated catalysts show that the main species occluded within the zeolite pore are propylene oxide oligomers, and these species occupying the active Ti site and blocking the pores of the lamina TS-1 are the main reason for the deactivation of catalyst. The deactivated catalyst can be regenerated by different regeneration methods. The activity of deactivated catalysts regenerated by dilute H₂O₂or heat treatment by using air or nitrogen as a calcination media can be fully recovered, but a decline in propylene oxide (PO) selectivity of the regenerated catalyst has been observed during the first hours of reaction. However, water vapor treatment of the deactivated catalyst can improve the PO selectivity with the same activity as that of the fresh lamina TS-1 catalyst.     

N-alkylation of aniline with ethanol over an industrial niobic acid catalyst – influence of water formation on kinetics and selectivity

The reaction of aniline with ethanol was carried out over an industrial niobic acid catalyst in a fixed bed reactor at atmospheric pressure and 220–260 °C. The main products, N-ethylaniline and N,N-diethylaniline were formed consecutively. A kinetic study including a model discrimination between several Hougen/Watson type rate equations led to an Eley/Rideal mechanism, where the reaction of gas phase aniline with adsorbed ethanol is the rate determining step. As second adsorbing agent, water inhibits the reaction in higher partial pressures. N-alkylation was the main reaction observed but the addition of water decreased the selectivity and up to 15% C-alkylated products were found. The apparent activation energies for the first and second N-ethylation are 85.6 and 70.7 kJ/mol, respectively. The high equilibrium constants indicate a nearly irreversible reaction.     

Lipase-catalyzed synthesis of chiral triglycerides

Under certain reaction conditions, the acidolysis of tripalmitin with oleic acid using immobilized lipase from Rhizomucor miehei resulted in a higher level of monosubstituted oleoyldipalmitoyl (OPP) triglycerides than had been predicted according to kinetic modeling. The reaction products were subjected to chiral analysis by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), which indicated that the enzyme was more active at the sn-1 position of the triglyceride than at the sn-3 position, resulting in synthesis of the chiral triglyceride 1-oleoyl-2,3-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycerol. A kinetic model was developed and was correlated with the HPLC method to provide a simple means to predict the stereoselectivity of lipase-catalyzed reactions. By using the model, the stereoselectivity of immobilized Rhizomucor miehei lipase was found to depend strongly on the initial water activity (a _w) of the reaction mixture, with greater selectivity occurring at lower a _w. The sn-1 selectivity was essentially maintained using various solvents, or without solvent, when a _w was kept constantly low. Variation in the fatty acid composition of the triglyceride indicated that shorter-chain fatty acids result in greater stereoselectivity, while variation of the chainlength of the free fatty acid indicated an enhancement by the longest chainlength. The stereoselectivity of this lipase was confirmed using a new ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance method. By using immobilized R. miehei lipase at low a _w approximately 80% of the chiral triglyceride found in the reaction mixture was the sn-1 enantiomer, at high reaction conversion.     

The Effect of Water on the Activity and Selectivity for γ-Alumina Supported Cobalt Fischer–Tropsch Catalysts with Different Pore Sizes

The effect of water on the activity and selectivity for a series of γ-Al₂O₃ supported cobalt Fischer–Tropsch catalysts has been studied in an isothermal fixed-bed reactor at T = 483 K, P = 20 bar, and H₂/CO = 2.1. The catalysts were produced applying incipient wetness impregnation and consisted of 20 wt.% cobalt and 0.5 wt.% rhenium deposited on γ-Al₂O₃ supports with different pore characteristics. For the narrow-pore catalysts, addition of water corresponding to an inlet partial pressure ratio of P_H2O/P_H2 = 0.4 reduced the reaction rates. In contrast, for a catalyst with larger pores the same water pressure increased the reaction rates. For all catalysts, water amounts equal to P_H2O/P_H2 = 0.7 at the reactor inlet suppressed the reaction rates and led to permanent deactivation. The addition of water increased the C₅₊ selectivity and decreased the CH₄ selectivity for all catalysts. The pore characteristics seem to determine the effect of water on the rates.     

Partial oxidation of n-hexadecane and polyethylene in supercritical water

In this study, we show the results of partial oxidation experiments of n-hexadecane (n-C₁₆) and polyethylene (PE) in supercritical water (SCW). The experiments were carried out at 673 or 693 K of reaction temperature and 5 or 30 min of reaction time using a 6 cm³ of a batch type reactor. Water density ranged from 0.1 to 0.52 g/cm³ (water pressure: 20–40 MPa). The loaded amount of oxygen was set to 0.3 of the ratio of oxygen atom to carbon atom. Some experiments were made using CO instead of oxygen for the partial oxidation of n-C₁₆ and PE to explore the effect of water gas shift reaction. In the results of partial oxidation of n-C₁₆, the yield of CO and some compounds containing oxygen atoms, such as aldehydes and ketones increased with increasing water density. Moreover, 1-alkene/ n-alkane ratio in the products decreased with increasing water density. The 1-alkene/n-alkane ratio was lower than that of pyrolysis in SCW. Also for the case of PE experiments, in dense SCW (0.42 g/cm³), the 1-alkene/n-alkane ratio in partial oxidation was lower than that in SCW pyrolysis. In the case of CO experiments for n-C₁₆ and PE, 1-alkene/n-alkane ratio was a little lower than that of pyrolysis in SCW. These results show that the yield of n-alkane, which is a hydrogenated compound, was higher through water gas shift reaction in SCW and also through partial oxidation in SCW. Therefore, these results suggest the possibility of hydrogenation of hydrocarbon through partial oxidation followed by the water gas shift reaction.     

Kinetic resolution of 1‐phenylethanol integrated with separation of substrates and products by a supported ionic liquid membrane

BACKGROUND: In the present study, the kinetic resolution of rac‐1‐phenylethanol by transesterification with several vinyl esters catalysed by a commercial immobilized Candida antarctica lipase B (Novozym 435) was carried out in n‐hexane at different water contents. The subtrates and products involved in the kinetic resolution were separated using a membrane bioreactor containing a supported liquid membrane based on the ionic liquid 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [bmim⁺][BF₄^?]. RESULTS: Variables affecting the kinetic resolution performance of the enzyme were studied. First, the influence of water content of the medium on the synthetic activity, selectivity and enantioselectivity of the enzyme was analysed in order to establish the optimal amount of water. The use of vinyl esters of different alkyl chain length (vinyl propionate, vinyl butyrate and vinyl laurate) as acyl donors to kinetic resolution was studied. Finally, the integrated reaction/separation process for the resolution of rac‐1‐phenylethanol was carried out in the optimal conditions found. CONCLUSION: These investigations demonstrate that the coupling of lipase enantioselectivity with the selective separation of supported liquid membranes based on ionic liquids provides a promising basis for practical production of enantiomerically pure or enriched compounds. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Carbon dispersed iron-manganese catalyst for light olefin synthesis from CO hydrogenation

High performance iron-manganese catalysts dispersed with carbon to produce light olefins from CO hydrogenation were prepared by sol-gel method using citric acid as precursor. The effects of carbon content on the bulk structure, the water gas shift reaction, the chain propagation ability and the activity and selectivity of the catalysts were investigated. The results showed that the catalysts were gradually reduced during the decomposition of the precursor when calcined under pure N₂. The formation of iron-manganese mixed crystallites was favored and stabilized because of the enhanced interaction of iron and manganese with increasing carbon content. During the subsequent CO hydrogenation reaction, all the catalysts showed high activity and olefin selectivity. With increasing carbon content, the water gas shift (WGS) reaction was restrained and the chain propagation ability was inhibited. Catalysts with higher carbon content showed much lighter hydrocarbon products; however, the selectivity of CH₄ was almost unchanged. This work was presented at the 7 ^th Korea-China Workshop on Clean Energy Technology held at Taiyuan, Shanxi, China, June 26–28, 2008.     

Homogenous and Heterogeneous Catalytic Activity of Azo-Linked Schiff Base Complexes of Mn(II), Cu(II) and Co(II)

Abstract  

Azo linked Schiff-base[L] complexes of Mn(II)(1), Cu(II)(2) and Co(II)(3) obtained by template method, in the reaction of 4-(benzeneazo) salicylaldehyde with 1,2-propanediamine in the present of metal acetate, respectively. Complexes are used as catalyst for oxidation of cyclohexene with tert-butylhydroperoxide (TBHP); oxidation of cyclohexene catalyzed by these complexes gave 2-cyclohexene-1-one and 2-cyclohexene-1-ol as major products. Conversion of cyclohexene achieved was 95–100% with (1), (2) and (3), with selectivity of 57, 92 and 100% for 2-cyclohexene-1-one, respectively. The encapsulated Cu(II) complex (Cu–NaY) catalyzes the oxidation of cyclohexene using TBHP as oxidant in good yield. (Cu–NaY) under optimized reaction condition gave three reaction products. A maximum of 100% conversion of cyclohexene has been achieved where selectivity of 2-cyclohexene-1-one was 83%.     

Catalytic cracking and skeletal isomerization of n-Hexene on ZSM-5 Zeolite

The catalytic cracking and skeletal isomerization of n-hexenes on 60/80 mesh ZSM-5 zeolite were studied in the temperature range 350–405°C. By applying the time-on-stream theory, the products of the reaction were identified as primary, secondary or both according to their optimum performance envelope (OPE) curves on product selectivity plots. The products of cracking were found to be almost exclusively mono-olefins and those in the range C₃-C₅ were found to be stable primary, or primary plus secondary products. No C₁ was found, and only traces of C₂ as ethylene. The observed product distributions can be explained by a dimerization-cracking mechanism with no product species having more than twelve carbon atoms. The probability of a fragment undergoing further cracking before desorption increased with temperature and the observed initial selectivities must be corrected to account for this process. Methylpentenes, formed as unstable primary products, were the main isomers produced by skeletal rearrangement, with those derived from more stable carbenium ions predominating. Paraffins, coke and aromatics were found in small amounts only.