Enhanced catalytic performance of H2SO4‐catalyzed C4 alkylation by formyl functional [N1,1,1,1][C10SO4] additive

Abstract

AbstractIt is of fundamental importance to assess the additive for isobutane alkylation catalyzed by the concentrated H2SO4 in actual industrial reactor, which usually contains 6.0–7.0 wt% red oil (ASO) impurity. Herein, the formyl functional [N1,1,1,1][C10SO4] additive was developed to enhance the catalytic performance of the H2SO4 taken from industrial stream with emphasis on process optimization and reaction kinetics. The ASO that existed in the H2SO4 from industrial stream has a promoting effect, and the introduction of [N1,1,1,1][C10SO4] with ratio of 0.3 wt% can further improve research octane number of alkylate even in a shorter reaction time. The kinetic model can well predict the concentration changes of key components, in which [N1,1,1,1][C10SO4] contributes to the larger reaction rate and lower activation energy for the targeted trimethylpentanes generation due to the intensified isobutane solvation. Hopefully, the novel additive has a promising application to optimize the H2SO4‐catalyzed industrial alkylation process.