Dehydration, Dienes, High Octane, and High Pressures: Contributions from Vladimir Nikolaevich Ipatieff, a Father of Catalysis

Abstract

Vladimir Nikolaevich Ipatieff contributed significantly to the birth of catalysis, first in Russia, then in Chicago at Northwestern University and UOP, and provided a strong base from which those of us practicing now continue to build. Among the discoveries in which he participated are the dehydration of alcohols to alkenes including ethanol to ethylene, the elucidation of the structure of isoprene, methods of butadiene synthesis, catalysts for hydrogenation, and the discovery and commercialization of oligomerization, paraffin alkylation, and acid-catalyzed aromatic alkylation. These discoveries and his enduring contributions in the form of the Ipatieff Prize and student education have ensured Ipatieff’s place in the chronicle of catalysis.

A Brief History of Oil Refining

“…The resulting alkylate has an excellent octane number, as well as a low vapor pressure and does not contain sulfur, olefins or aromatics, all this makes it the ideal component for formulating gasoline. 27 Research and development in alkylation technology has been aimed at eliminating the use of sulfuric or hydrofluoric acids as catalysts. For a long time, solid catalysts have been sought to replace them and recently, the Alkyclean process of Lummus and Neste Oil has been commercialized, with a zeolitic catalyst from Abermarle.…”

Nikolay Zelinsky (1861–1953): Mendeleev's Protege, a Brilliant Scientist, and the Top Soviet Chemist of the Stalin Era

“…We should also mention the name of the brilliant scientist and military general V. Ipatiev (Ipatieff), who was one of the founders of heterogeneous catalysis (a Father of Catalysis in USA). Emigrating from the USSR in 1930, he actually helped create an oil refinery industry in USA that provided the United States with high‐octane fuel during World War II [30] . No doubt, N. Zelinsky and V. Ipatiev had a lot connections in chemistry and were competitors in catalytic chemistry at the beginning of the 20th century.…”

Ethanol Conversion to Butadiene: A Thermodynamic Analysis

“…Based on previous experimental observations, in the first decades of the 20 century, two catalytic processes for ethanol conversion to BD (ETB process) were developed: the “one-step process” discovered by Lebedev (BD is obtained from ethanol directly, in a single catalytic reactor) and the “two-step process” developed by Ostromislensky (where ethanol is first dehydrogenated to acetaldehyde in a separate reactor, and further, BD is synthesized from ethanol and acetaldehyde, in the second stage). These processes were used in the 1940s to produce 100 000 tons/year of BD in Soviet Union (by Lebedev process) and 300 000 tons/year in the United States (by Ostromislensky process) . However, after 1960, due to the low price of oil and progress of petrochemical technologies, the BD production from ethanol became economically unattractive and was abandoned …”

“…These processes were used in the 1940s to produce 100 000 tons/year of BD in Soviet Union (by Lebedev process) and 300 000 tons/year in the United States (by Ostromislensky process). 6 However, after 1960, due to the low price of oil and progress of petrochemical technologies, the BD production from ethanol became economically unattractive and was abandoned. 7 In the last two decades, the interest in the BD manufacture from ethanol is growing again, an important number of published studies contributing to the development of a high number of new catalysts and to progresses in understanding the process fundamentals.…”