A Solid Acid Catalyst at the Threshold of Superacid Strength: NMR, Calorimetry, and Density Functional Theory Studies of Silica-Supported Aluminum Chloride

摘要

Solid state NMR, calorimetry, and density functional theory (DFT) all provide a consistent interpretation of the acidity of the solid acid catalyst (SG)_nAlCl_2, which is prepared by reacting aluminum chloride with conditioned silica gel. These studies firmly establish that the acid sites are Bronsted in nature and that their strength is significantly greater than those in zeolites.