Vapor Phase Methylation of m-Cresol over Ce-Impregnated Cd1-xCrxFe2O4 (x = 0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75 and 1.0) Ferrospinels

Abstract

Cd-Cr ferrospinels prepared by co-precipitation method were impregnated with cerium as promoter. Ce-impregnated ferrospinels were tested for the vapor phase alkylation of m-cresol with methanol. It has been observed that with increase in value of ‘x’ in Ce-impregnated Cd_1-xCr_xFe₂O₄ ferrospinels, the selectivity of 2,5-dimethyl phenol increases considerably. The reason for the improved catalytic selectivity may be due to the preferential adsorption, the strong synergistic effects among the different metal components and the relative changes in the redox nature of catalysts.