Abstract
The activities of some amorphous and crystalline polymeric zirconium phosphates as Friedel-Crafts catalysts have been investigated. Catalytic behaviour was studied in the alkylation of anisole with alcohols in both liquid and gas phases and compared with the activity of alumina and acid activated clay. Under comparable experimental conditions, the catalytic activity of amorphous zirconium phosphate compares favourably with that shown by the superacidic Nafion-H. The range of phenols and ring-methylated anisoles obtained in the methylation of anisole in the gas-phase over Nafion-H and amorphous zirconium phosphate are similar, but the relative amount of phenol is lower with the phosphate. The results indicate that catalytic activity is particularly high for amorphous phosphate gels prepared with phosphorus to metal ratios of less than 2. This high level of activity is accompanied by large surface areas with sites of high acidity.
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