Categories: Organic Chemistry >> Synthesis >> Solvents

Multiphase Homogeneous Catalysis

Description

This long-awaited two-volume handbook is the one-stop reference for everybody working in the field of multiphase catalysis. Covering academic and industrial applications, it will set the standard for future developments.

Editorial Review

Green chemistry has already revolutionized several industrial chemical processes, and in the future will play a more significant role in the manufacture of chemical compounds. This is the conclusion reached after an in-depth reading of the present work, "Multiphase Homogeneous Catalysis".

The properties of the alternative solvents and reagents that have been specially developed for these systems make it possible to run reactions in multiphase systems, with a rapid and inexpensive work-up of the phase that carries the desired product. In the best cases, a catalyst in the second phase can be reused directly. These alternative solvents permit the use of a completely new kind of process control, which is impressively demonstrated with a number of examples. Despite their expense, the use of solvents such as ionic liquids helps to optimize existing processes and to avoid high process costs.

Chemical engineers need to learn about the properties of these alternative solvents and the available options, including combination with organic solvents (and reagents), in order to develop a workable process from the broad spectrum of possibilities. "Multiphase Homogeneous Catalysis" presents the fundamentals in an eminently readable form. The use of water, ionic liquids, supercritical CO₂, and polymer-bound reagents are all covered in detail. For example, the authors explain the influence of stirring rate on micelle formation and indirectly upon reaction rate, and several water-compatible catalysts are discussed. The section on the subject of ionic liquids includes toxicological studies and their stability, which have a significant impact on their reusability. Fluorous phases, which are finding ever broader application in combinatorial chemistry, receive marginal attention.

Some of the reaction examples provided serve to highlight the current status of this field. Monographs on the specific solvents can offer a larger number of reactions; however, such books are not oriented toward the chemical engineer, and do not speak to the potential of these alternative solvents from the perspective of the technical aspects of processes and reactions. The present book comes recommended to chemical technology students and engineers who have an interest in this area.

Contents

Introduction to Multiphase Catalysis
Aqueous-Phase Catalysis
Organic/Organic Biphasic Catalysis
Fluorous Catalysis
Catalysis in Nonaqueous Ionic Liquids
Catalysis using Supercritical Solvents
Soluble Polymer-Bound Catalysis
Multiphase Processes as the Future of Homogeneous Catalysis