Green route for the chlorination of nitrobenzene

A new green chlorination process of deactivated aromatics has been developed, being environmental-friendly and allowing the continuous chlorination of 1.7 kg nitrobenzene/kg catalyst per day.The triple novelty consists of using a non-conventional chlorination agent, the trichloroisocyanuric acid (TCCA, C3N3O3Cl3), along with solid acid catalysts (mainly zeolites) in a continuous flow reactor system. Different zeolites and solid acids have been tested in the chlorination of nitrobenzene, chosen as a model deactivated aromatic substrate.HUSY zeolite was found as the more promising catalyst for performing the chlorination of nitrobenzene, with good conversions (39–64%) at high selectivity toward monochlorinated products (90–99%). Finally, it is worthy to note that HUSY zeolite could be reused for at least five successive runs.

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► Novel green chlorination process of nitrobenzene.
► Continuous gas–solid reactor system at mild temperature, 150 °C.
► Use of eco-friendly zeolite catalysts instead of strong liquid acids.
► HUSY zeolite was found as the more promising catalyst, allowing 39% nitrobenzene conversion.