Alkylation of Toluene with t-Butyl Alcohol over Zeolite Catalysts

Alkylation of toluene with tert -butylalcohol was investigated over three zeolite catalysts (HY, Hβ, and HMCM-22). The acid properties of zeolites were characterized by FT-IR. The fact that the reaction was influenced by the mount of acid was discussed emphatically, and the reaction temperature on conversion of toluene and selectivity for 4-tert-butyl toluene was also studied. The main products have been identified as 4- tert -butyltoluene and 3- tert -butyltoluene. The best result was obtained when temperature was 473 K, the space velocity was 4.0 h −1, and the mole ratio of toluene to tert-butylalcohol was 6. Zeolite HMCM-22, with the highest total acid and the lowest ratio of the total B acid to the total L acid, possessed high activity for toluene conversion and high paraselectivity over the three types of zeolite catalysts.