In this Environmentally Benign Chemical Synthesis and Processing project, supported by the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry Program, academic chemist, Professor John Gladysz of the University of Utah and industrial chemist, Dr. Istvan Horvath of Exxon Corporate Research Laboratory will undertake the development of new solid acid catalysts. These acid catalysts will be based upon protic organometallic compounds immobilized on solid polymeric supports such as polystyrene and Nafion. It is expected that these acids will exhibit new modes of reactivity that will involve both the acidic proton and the metal center. Success in these endeavors could result in processes that produce less acidic wastes than current methods. Immobilization of the organometallic acids will require the development of new ligands and methods for attaching them to the polymeric supports. Polystyrene will be derivatized with fluorinated polydentate organophosphine or cyclopentadienyl ligands, which will be used to bind metal hydride species. Alternative systems will be based upon Nafion, which has been derivatized at the sulfonamide group with donor groups such that metal hydride species can be covalently bound. New compositions will be characterized by infrared and NMR spectroscopies, by measurements of Hammett acidities, and by screening for catalytic activity in alkylation reactions such as those that are required for petroleum feedstock conversions. The majority of known industrial chemical manufacturing processes involve some type of catalysis. A large number of these catalytic processes involve the use of strong acids. Those that employ soluble acids often generate large quantities of highly acidic waste that must be treated to reduce its acidity prior to disposal. New solid-phase acids that may replace these are highly desirable. This project undertakes fundamental studies of new materials that ultimate provide the basis for more environmentally benign manufacture o f important commodity chemicals.
