Mass Transfer and Solubility of CO and H2 in Ionic Liquid. Case of [Bmim][PF6] with Gas-Inducing Stirrer Reactor

Abstract

Since the past decade, ionic liquids have gained significant importance as alternative solvents for catalysis applications. Many of the reactions evaluated in ionic liquids employ gases as substrates, and therefore it is important to know their solubility and mass transfer characteristics. This work reports for the first time both the solubility and volumetric gas−liquid mass transfer coefficient kLa for hydrogen and carbon monoxide in 1-n-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([Bmim][PF6]) at three temperatures (293, 323, and 373 K) in relevance to hydroformylation reaction. The experimental data on the volumetric gas−liquid mass transfer coefficient are described by a dimensionless correlation for the bench-scale stirred tanks with gas-inducing impeller. kLa values have also been evaluated for different [Bmim][PF6]−decane emulsions at 373 K.