Abstract:

Al-MCM-41 mesoporous sieves were synthesized by using Na2SiO3 as silica source, Al2(SO4)3 as aluminum source, and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as template agent under hydrothermal condition. The Al-MCM-41 mesoporous sieves were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and infrared spectroscopy (IR). The synthesis of diphenylethane over Al-MCM-41 catalyst and its catalytic performance were investigated. The results showed that the optimal conditions were: the mass percent of catalyst is 1 % of feed stock; molar ratio of xylene to styrene is 7.5: 1; reaction temperature is 140 °C and reaction time is 3 h. The yield of diphenylethane under such conditions was about 87.1 %, which was 17 % higher than the yield when using traditional sulfuric acid as catalyst. The results showed that Al-MCM-41 is a promising solid acid catalyst for synthesis of diphenylethylane instead of liquid acid.