Synthesis, characterization and investigation of catalytic activity of Cu1 − xCoxFe2O4 nanocatalysts in t-butylation of p-cresol

In this work, tertiary butylation of p-cresol was carried out in the presence of Cu1 − xCoxFe2O4 (x = 0 to 1) nanocatalysts by employing methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE) and tert-butyl alcohol (TBA) as alkylation agents. Effects of temperature, mole ratio, type and catalyst composition, time and solvent in reaction conditions were investigated. These nanocatalysts were synthesized using hydrothermal method. The characterization of these catalysts was investigated by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR). These nanocatalysts can be recovered and recycled. A good correlation was found between the activity, in terms of p-cresol conversion and various product selectivities for this reaction, and also the acid–base properties of the catalysts. Nano-sized Cu0.5Co0.5Fe2O4, in comparison to the other nanocatalysts discussed in this report is the most active nanocatalyst. The only product of this reaction is 2-t-butyl p-cresol with selectivity of 100% and p-cresol conversion is 70%. The possible mechanism for this reaction system was discussed based on the reaction results. The reaction mechanism proposed involves the interaction of phenoxide from phenol and the tert-butyl cation from isobutene on Cu1 − xCoxFe2O4.