Oxidative dehydrogenation of propane in lithium hydroxide/lithium iodide melts

The reactions of propane with iodine have been evaluated theoretically in the temperature range 700–900 K. These calculations have been compared with test runs with propane/air in lithium hydroxide/lithium iodide melte. Thermodynamic and kinetic considerations show that low temperatures give higher propene selectivities. The experimental results confirm this and indicate that the reaction proceeds by a radical mechanism. A major factor governing propene selectivity is the ratio of nonnal/isopropyl radicals. At the relatively high radical concentrations encountered in the system, benzene is the ultimate product. Optimizing the iodine/hydrogen iodide-catalyzed oxidative dehydrogenation of propane with oxygen for propene or benzene production is feasible.