Synthesis and analysis of nitro compounds under zeolite catalysis.

The purpose of this study was to develop a new clean method for aromatic nitration using a heterogeneous inorganic solid catalyst. The thesis consists of four chapters. Chapter one presents an introduction to the types of heterogeneous catalyst with some details for the most important catalysts. An electrophilic aromatic substitution is introduced in Chapter 2. Some of the latest examples of aromatic nitration using different type of nitrating reagents are discussed in this chapter. Chapter 3 deals with the nitration of halogenobenzenes using dinitrogen tetroxide, a zeolite and oxygen in a solvent system. Zeolites Hbeta (Si/Al = 12.5) and Y (Si/Al = 30) were found to be the most efficients catalyst for the para- selective nitration of halogenobenzenes when dinitrogen tetroxide was used as the nitrating reagent over zeolite HB in 1,2-dichloroethane. This system represents a low energy (0 °C), and potentially a clean synthesis of halonitrobenzenes using an easily recycled solvent and catalyst system. Chapter 4 shows the nitration of aromatic compounds using dinitrogen tetroxide, a zeolite, and air in the absence of a solvent system. This system has more advantages than the previous one. Zeolite Hbeta (Si/Al = 12.5) was found to be the most efficient catalyst for the para-selective nitration of halogenobenzenes and benzene when dinitrogen tetroxide was used as nitrating reagent under 200 psi air pressure at room temperature