Conversion, Selectivity, and Kinetics of the Dehydration of 1-Pentanol to Di-n-Pentyl Ether Catalyzed by a Microporous Ion-Exchange Resin

Selectivity, yield, and kinetics of the liquid-phase dehydration of 1-pentanol to di-n-pentyl ether were studied experimentally over a commercial gel-type ion-exchange resin with 4% of cross-linking in the temperature range 120-150 (degree)C at 1 MPa in a continuous stirred tank reactor. Selectivities to ether higher than 96% were obtained at all temperatures for space times greater than 5 g h mol-1. However, the obtained maximum yield is only 0.22 of 1. The best kinetic model stems from a mechanism in which 1-pentanol, adsorbed on one center, reacts with 1-pentanol from the liquid phase to give the ether adsorbed. The surface reaction is assumed to be the rate-limiting step, in which only one center takes part.