title: Organic chemistry. A rhodium catalyst for single-step styrene production from benzene and ethylene.
abstract: Rising global demand for fossil resources has prompted a renewed interest in catalyst technologies that increase the efficiency of conversion of hydrocarbons from petroleum and natural gas to higher-value materials. Styrene is currently produced from benzene and ethylene through the intermediacy of ethylbenzene, which must be dehydrogenated in a separate step. The direct oxidative conversion of benzene and ethylene to styrene could provide a more efficient route, but achieving high selectivity and yield for this reaction has been challenging. Here, we report that the Rh catalyst ((Fl)DAB)Rh(TFA)(η(2)-C2H4) [(Fl)DAB is N,N'-bis(pentafluorophenyl)-2,3-dimethyl-1,4-diaza-1,3-butadiene; TFA is trifluoroacetate] converts benzene, ethylene, and Cu(II) acetate to styrene, Cu(I) acetate, and acetic acid with 100% selectivity and yields ≥95%. Turnover numbers >800 have been demonstrated, with catalyst stability up to 96 hours.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA.
authors.forename: Benjamin A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Vaughan
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA.
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Webster-Gardiner
authors.affiliation: Center for Advanced Scientific Computing and Modeling, Department of Chemistry, University of North Texas, Denton, TX 76203, USA. tbg7h@virginia.edu t@unt.edu.
authors.forename: Thomas R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Cundari
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA. tbg7h@virginia.edu t@unt.edu.
authors.forename: T Brent
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Gunnoe