Indium-containing ZSM-5 catalyst for methylation of benzene : effect of treatment and reaction conditions

Abstract

Toluene production through the reaction between benzene and methane has been studied by many research groups. Thermodynamic limitation is the main obstruction to achieve high conversion and yield. Since methane is highly stable, the activation process of direct benzene methylation requires suitable active catalyst and reaction conditions. In this research, indium loaded ZSM-5 was prepared by solid-state ion exchange technique using different treatment atmospheres (e.g. nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen). The reaction was performed in a continuous flow reactor using methane and benzene as a raw materials carried by nitrogen and oxygen with different molar ratio. The reaction temperature, indium to aluminum ratio of catalysts, space velocity and methane to benzene feed ratio were also varied. It was found that benzene conversion was in the range of 0 to 10.4 % while toluene selectivity was in the range of 36% to 100%.