Improved method to alkylate Yūbari coal of Japan using molten potassium under refluxing THF

A modification to Sternberg's procedures of reductive alkylation of coals is proposed. The ‘coal anion’ formation reaction is conducted under refluxing THF without any electron transfer agent and with molten potassium metal. The method was applied to Yūbari coal (86 wt % C) whereby varying reaction times (0.5–6 h) altered the lengths of alkyl groups (CH₃C₄H₉) added. In a typical experiment, a butylated Yubari coal, prepared by the 2 h reaction, contained 7 butyl groups per 100 original carbon atoms and solubility in hot benzene was 75 wt %. The numbers of alkyl groups introduced and the solubilities of coals increased with reaction time. Values obtained were comparable to those reported using conventional procedures which required longer reaction times and an electron transfer agent l.r. spectra of butylated coals showed strong adsorption peaks attributed to aliphatic groups. Benzene-soluble—pentane-insoluble material of the alkylated coal had less condensed aromatic components with more alkyl side-chains compared with Yūbari SRC, which were estimated by the Brown—Ladner method. Contamination of the alkylated coal by THF fragments seems to be negligible, since hydrogenated naphthalene, obtained after treatment with molten potassium, contains no alkylated products. The reaction proceeded also in HMPA, but not in straight-chain hexane.