Sulfated tin oxide: An efficient catalyst for alkylation of hydroquinone with tert-butanol

Sulfated tin oxide prepared by thermal decomposition of Stannous sulfate displays high activity for the alkylation of hydroquinone with tert-butanol, over which the conversion of hydroquinone and yield of 2-tert-butylhydroquinone reach 96% and 65% at 150 °C. No obvious deactivation was observed during the first four runs. The high activity was due to its hydrophobic surface on which the acid sites were not easy to be poisoned by water during the reaction, and the high reusability may result from the weak strength of its acid sites on which less tar or polymeric compounds would be formed by the side reactions.