N-alkylation of amines with alcohols over hydrothermally prepared Nb-W mixed oxides

Abstract

Hydrothermally synthesized Nb-W mixed oxides (Nb-W-O) have been employed as a cost-effective and recyclable alternative to noble metals and homogeneous catalysts for the N-alkylation of amines with alcohols, with the model reaction of aniline and benzyl alcohol. The synergistic roles of Nb and W and the influence of calcination conditions were explored. Nb-W-O exhibited a linear packing of corner-sharing octahedra, analogous to the hexagonal tungsten bronze (HTB) structure, but without the long-range order of the HTB in the ab plane, characteristic of pseudo-crystalline materials. Calcination at 773 K in an N2 flow preserved the pseudo-crystalline phase and generated additional Brønsted acid sites, associated with reduced tungsten oxide species stabilized by Nb. The primary reaction pathway involved the activation of the benzyl alcohol by Brønsted acid sites, followed by a nucleophilic attack of the formed carbocation by the aniline. Nb-W-O demonstrated superior activity to other solid acids including metal oxides, silica-alumina, and zeolites in the N-alkylation reaction.