Toward industrial catalysis of zeolite for linear alkylbenzene synthesis: A mini review

•Zeolite is a potential catalyst to replace hazardous HF catalyst in linear alkylbenzene (LAB) synthesis.•Zeolite catalyzes higher 2-LAB isomer than HF catalyst for improved biodegradability.•2-LAB isomer selectivity is controlled mainly by zeolite micropore opening.•Incorporation mesoporosity into zeolite could improve its catalytic stability even for diene containing olefinic feed.•Zeolite activity during LAB synthesis could be periodically regenerated with benzene washing.

In this min-review, we discuss the potential of zeolite for industrial linear alkylbenzene (LAB) synthesis with special focus on 2-LAB isomer selectivity control and catalytic stability improvement. Some viable post treatment methods, including general dealumination and desilication modification, as well as delamination and pillaring methods, have been demonstrated for mesoporosity generation and catalytic property improvement particularly LAB isomer selectivity and catalytic stability.

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