US 8,772,035 B2 · Process for controlling ionic liquid catalyst activity by titration

Abstract

A process for determining ionic liquid catalyst deactivation including (a) collecting at least one sample of an ionic liquid catalyst; (b) hydrolyzing the at least one sample to provide at least one hydrolyzed sample; (c) titrating the at least one hydrolyzed sample with a basic reagent to determine a volume of the basic reagent necessary to neutralize a Lewis acid species of the ionic liquid catalyst; and (d) calculating the acid content of the at least one sample from the volume of basic reagent determined in step (c) is described. Processes incorporating such a process for determining ionic liquid catalyst deactivation are also described. These processes are an alkylation process, a process for controlling ionic liquid catalyst activity in a reaction producing by-product conjunct polymers, and a continuous process for maintaining the acid content of an ionic liquid catalyst at a target acid content in a reaction producing by-product conjunct polymers.

Claims17

Dependent claims

A process for controlling ionic liquid catalyst activity in a reaction producing by-product conjunct polymers, comprising:

(a) using an ionic liquid catalyst in a reaction producing by-product conjunct polymers;
(b) collecting samples of the ionic liquid catalyst at regular intervals;
(c) hydrolyzing the samples to provide hydrolyzed samples;
(d) titrating the hydrolyzed samples with a basic reagent selected from the group consisting of potassium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, rubidium hydroxide, cesium hydroxide, and barium hydroxide until the basic reagent neutralizes a Lewis acid species of the ionic liquid catalyst, as indicated by an inflection point in a titration curve, to determine a volume of the basic reagent necessary to neutralize the Lewis acid species of each sample;
(e) calculating an acid content of the hydrolyzed samples from the volume of basic reagent determined in step (d);
and
(f) regenerating the ionic liquid catalyst when the acid content of the hydrolyzed samples reaches or falls below 80% of a fresh acid content of a fresh ionic liquid catalyst that has not been subject to deactivation, to provide a regenerated ionic liquid catalyst;
and wherein the fresh acid content of the fresh ionic liquid catalyst is greater than 650 meq OH/q.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Process for controlling ionic liquid catalyst activity by titration

Life of this patent

Process for controlling ionic liquid catalyst activity by titration

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims17