Amoco Corporation

Richard E De Simone

Muin S Haddad

Bruce I Rosen

Eric J Moore

Tayseer S Nimry

The invention is a solid state preparation of copper aluminum borate catalyst comprising: dry mixing solid reagents comprising suitable precursors of copper oxide (CuO), aluminum oxide (Al.sub.2 O.sub.3) and boron oxide (B.sub.2 O.sub.3) with a solid binder which aids compaction of the solid reagents, is essentially inert to said reagents, and burns away upon calcination, said dry mixing resulting in formation of a superficially dry copper aluminum borate precursor; compacting the dry precursor; and calcining the precursor at a sufficiently high temperature to form crystalline copper aluminum borate.

Preparaton of copper aluminum borate catalyst and optional improvement

Described are catalyst compositions comprising a HAMS-1B crystalline borosilicate molecular sieve incorporated into an inorganic matrix, which have been impregnated with a magnesium compound or with both a phosphorus compound and a magnesium compound, said impregnated compositions having improved para-selectively for toluene alkylation. Such impregnated compositions, when used for the alkylation of toluene using methanol, methylether, ethylene, or propylene yield dialkylbenzene products containing a higher proportion of the para-isomer than corresponding unimpregnated borosilicate-based compositions. When toluene is alkylated with propylene using the impregnated catalyst compositions of this invention, a significant increase in para-selectivity among the cymene isomers is obtained at high total-cymene/n-propyltoluene ratios.

AMS-1B crystalline borosilicate molecular sieve-based catalyst

Described are catalyst compositions comprising a HAMS-1B crystalline borosilicate molecular sieve, the majority of the crystallites of which are between about 1 micron and about 15 micron in largest diameter, incorporated into an inorganic matrix, which have been impregnated with a small amount of a magnesium compound, said impregnated compositions having improved para-selectively for toluene methylation to xylene. Such impregnated compositions, when used for the methylation of toluene using methanol or dimethylether, yield a xylene product containing a very high proportion of the para isomer compared to corresponding unimpregnated or magnesium compound-impregnated borosilicate-based compositions containing standard size (0.2.mu. to 0.5.mu.) borosilicate molecular sieve crystallites.

Disclosed are improved HAMS-1B crystalline molecular sieve-based catalyst compositions made by impregnating such a sieve, which has been incorporated in an inorganic matrix, with a small amount of a magnesium compound, and a process for employing such catalyst compositions for the methylation of a xylene in which the amount of pseudocumene in the product is substantially enhanced compared to that produced by the unimpregnated catalyst composition.

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Lisle, IL, United States of America

Richard E De Simone