Benzene → Cumene

Participants

Reaction Steps

All experiments were conducted in a fixed-bed, ⅜″ or ¾″ OD tubular reactor in a downflow configuration. The reactor furnace was controlled in isothermal mode. The catalyst was dried off-line at 260° C. in air for two hours before loading. Experiments were conducted with catalyst as whole extrudates loaded into the ⅜″ reactor. The catalyst bed was axially centered in the middle furnace zone. The catalyst was used extrudate form or crushed and sized to 50-60 mesh depending on the type of experiment. All catalysts were packed with inert sand to fill the interstitial void spaces. Reaction conditions were 125° C., benzene:propylene molar ratio of 2.8, and 31887 kPa-a (300 psig). Weight Hourly Space Velocity was adjusted during the experiments and ranged from 1 h−1 WHSV (propylene basis) to 320 h−1 WHSV (propylene basis).

Provenance & Evidence