Fluoranthene formation over zeolites

Gaseous 1-phenylnaphthalene was allowed to react with two H(+)ZSM-5 zeolites distinguished by a different acidity. The isomerisation to 2-phenylnaphthalene was the principal reaction observed, but also fragmentation to benzene plus naphthalene and self-condensation to fluoranthene occurred. The yields of all the products were higher when the more acidic zeolite was used. A temperature dependence study showed that, varying the temperature from 390 to 450 degrees C, the yield of fluoranthene increased. By the Arrhenius plots for fluoranthene formation it was concluded that the activation energy of this reaction is independent on the acidity of zeolites. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd