Catalytic Activity of Quaternary Ammonium Poly(methylstyrene-co-styrene) Resin in an Organic Solvent/Alkaline Solution

The reaction of 4-methoxyphenylacetic acid with n-bromobutane using triphase catalysis in a dichloromethane/alkaline solution was investigated. Meanwhile, the lab-produced resins and the commercial ion-exchange resin (triphase catalyst) were characterized in terms of the density of active sites, thermal stability, imbibed solvent composition, and reuse of the resin. The amount of active sites in the resin was characterized by EA, TGA, and Volhard methods. The imbibed amounts of organic solvent and water and the volume ratios for lab-produced resins were larger than those for commercial resins. The degradation of the catalyst due to temperature is greater than that due to base concentration.