Exploring the Catalytic Pathway of Butane Isomerisation

The petrochemical industry accounts for a large proportion of global chemical industry, as such even subtle improvements in product yield can result in significant economic and environmental benefits. This has led to significant investigation into microporous solid acid catalysts, such as zeolites and aluminophosphates, which are used for many key petrochemical processes. Isobutane is the only natural gas liquid manufactured from another natural gas liquid; n-butane, thus butane isomerisation is a key reaction in petrochemical processing. We intend to observe interactions between n-butane (reactant), isobutane (product) and a C8 species (intermediate) and a Zeolite catalyst (Mordenite) to focus on acid-substrate interactions. This will be complemented by observing a quenched reaction mixture (prepared offline) to contrast with the prepared mixtures to look at the catalytic pathway.