A one-step catalytic separation process for the production of cumene

Abstract

A novel reactor design has been completed and tested for catalytic separation and production of cumene. Use of a reactive separation column packed with a solid acid catalyst where simultaneous reaction and partial separation occur during cumene production allows separation of unreacted excess benzene from other products as they form. This high yielding system allows for one step processing of cumene, with reduced need for product purification. Beta catalysts produced promising results, including cumene selectivity for catalytic separation reactions starting at 85% and cumene reaction yield up to 30% at a reaction temperature of 115 °C. Simultaneously, up to 76% of unreacted benzene was separated from the products.