1-Butanol dehydration as catalytic test to determine acidity of solid acids

Abstract

Catalytic dehydration of 1-Butanol was used as a test reaction to determine the nature of acid sites on several samples: undoped and doped sulfated-zirconia (dopants: Ce, W, or Sb), ZSM-5, Al-MCM-41 and permutite (amorphous aluminosilicate). Acid strength for each sample was ranked according to its catalytic activity. Catalysts exhibiting similar activity can be compared by the isomer ratios: cis-butene/trans-butene (CB/TB), 1-butene/trans-butene (1B/TB), and isobutene/ trans-butene (IB/TB). It was found that the activity of the sulfated-zirconia was directly proportional to the sulfate content. Interestingly, Al-MCM-41 exhibits similar acidity to the best sulfated-zirconia sample.

Keywords

• acid solids
• acid catalysts
• alcohol dehydration
• sulfated zirconia