Screening of metal chloride catalysts for oxychlorination of propene Original Research Article

Metal chloride catalysts preferred for oxychlorination of propene were investigated by a simple and useful model oxidation-reduction treatment. Activity and selectivity of the catalyst was correlated with the metal-chloride bonding energy (Em-c1). In the cases of palladium, tellurium and platinum, having an Em-c1 value lower than about 20 kcal/mol, allyl chloride was produced predominantly. In the cases of the catalysts having an EM-C1 value higher than about 30 kcal/mol, no reaction occurred. On the catalyst with medium Em-c1, that is on copper, dichloropropane was mainly formed by the chlorine addition reaction.