Oligomerization of Izobutene in the Presence of Ionic Liquid – Based Catalysts

Abstract

In the petrochemical industry, the C4 stream including isobutene is an important raw material that can be upgraded. Oligomerization of isobutene is a very promising reaction, as the hydrogenation products of dimers and trimers, obtained from isobutene, can be used as gasoline and diesel additives, respectively. In the present paper, our results concerning the use of Brønsted acidic ionic liquids as oligomerization catalysts are presented. The ionic liquids were supported on silica. Most of the solid catalysts were reused several times without loss of activity. By the proper choice of the ionic liquid and reaction conditions, good selectivity towards either C8 or C12+ products could be achieved.