Methylation of toluene over MnAPO-11 and ZAPO-11

329-333Methylation of toluene with methanol in the vapour phase has been studied over MnAPO-11 and ZAPO-11. The reactions were carried out in a fixed bed reactor in the temperature range of 250-400ºC. p-Xylene is produced in greater concentrations than the other products. The selectivity for p-xylene is a function of acidity, specific surface area of the catalyst, reaction temperature and toluene to methanol ratio. ZAPO-11 was found to be more active than MnAPO-11. Maximum conversion (25.8%) was observed at 400ºC over ZAPO-11. The selectivity to p-xylene was found to increase with time on stream possibly due to partial reduction in the pore size of the catalyst by coke depositio