对二甲苯(PX)是重要的有机化工原料,主要用于生产对苯二甲酸(PTA)和对苯二甲酸二甲酯(DMT),PTA和DMT可经缩聚生产化纤、合成树脂和塑料等聚酯产品.PX主要通过甲苯歧化、二甲苯异构化或甲苯与C9芳烃烷基转移等方式生产.由于三种二甲苯和乙苯的沸点接近,需要经过吸附分离或深冷分离才能得到高纯度的PX,传统工艺物料循环量大,设备庞大,操作费用高.而通过甲苯和甲醇烷基化反应直接高选择性生成PX,可大大降低成本,具有非常高的经济效益和研究价值.自1970年代以来,国内外众多科研院所对甲苯和甲醇烷基化催化剂进行了广泛研究,但催化剂选择性和稳定性仍需进一步提高.为了加深对甲苯和甲醇烷基化反应的认识,指导催化剂开发,有必要对甲苯和甲醇烷基化生成二甲苯的反应机理进行深入研究.当前甲苯和甲醇烷基化机理研究主要存在以下问题:(1)计算得到的能量多为电子能,而非自由能;(2)所采用的模型多为团簇模型,使用ONIOM方法,对长程作用力描述不充分;(3)认为甲苯只有一种吸附状态;(4)没有考虑偕烷基化反应.本文采用周期性模型,通过密度泛函理论研究了HZSM-5分子筛上甲苯和甲醇烷基化反应机理,通过计算熵得到了反应自由能,并考虑了偕烷基化反应.由于甲基的存在,在甲苯的吸附态中,甲基会伸向孔道的不同方向,因此我们认为甲苯有多种吸附态,而不同的吸附态会生成不同的二甲苯.结果表明,甲苯可以在对位、间位、邻位和偕位上通过协同机理或分步机理发生烷基化反应.在协同机理中,甲苯在对位、间位、邻位和偕位发生烷基化反应的自由能垒分别为167,138,139和183 kJ/mol.在分步机理中,甲醇脱水生成甲氧基的自由能垒为145 kJ/mol,是决速步骤;而甲苯和甲氧基对位、间位、邻位和偕位烷基化的自由能垒分别为127,105,106和114 kJ/mol
Periodic density functional theory was applied to investigate the reaction mechanism for the methylation of toluene with methanol over HZSM-5.The results indicated that toluene could be methylated at its para,meta,ortho and geminal positions via a concerted or stepwise pathway.For the concerted pathway,the calculated free energy barriers for the para,meta,ortho and geminal methylation reactions were 167,138,139 and 183 kJ/mol,respectively.For the stepwise pathway,the dehydration of methanol was found to be the rate-determining step with a free energy barrier of145 kj/mol,whereas the free energy barriers for the methylation of toluene at its para,meta,ortho and geminal positions were 127,105,106 and 114 kj/mol,respectively.Both pathways led to the formation of C8H11^+ species as important intermediates,which could back-donate a proton to the zeolite framework via a reorientation process or form gaseous products through demethylation.Methane was formed via an intramolecular hydrogen transfer reaction from a ring carbon of the C8H11^+ species to the carbon of the methyl group,with calculated energy barriers of 136,132 and134 kj/mol for the para,meta and ortho C8H11^+ species,respectively.The calculated free energy barriers for the formation of para-,meta- and ortho-xylene indicated that the formation of the para-xylene had the highest energy barrier for both pathways.