Abstract
The effect of the presence of chlorine on the activity and selectivity of a Cu/Al2O3 catalyst has been examined for the selective hydrogenation of an αβ unsaturated aldehyde, crotonaldehyde. Cu/Al2O3 in the absence of chlorine poisons produced 1-butanol almost exclusively, whereas catalysts pre-dosed with a suitable amount of chlorine compound (CCl4, CHCl3 and CH2Cl2) shifted the product distribution towards formation of butanal. The poisoning effectiveness increased in the order CCl4<CHCl3<CH2Cl2≪CH3Cl and methyl chloride was found to totally deactivate the catalyst. The most significant enhancement in butanal selectivity was observed with CCl4 and CH2Cl2. The effect of chlorine as a poison is in contrast to the effect of sulphur which enhances formation of crotyl alcohol and the origins of these effects are discussed.
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