Electro-oxidation rate ofp-tert-butyltoluene in a bipolar packed-bed electrode cell

TLDR: In this paper, the side chain methoxylation of p-tert-butyltoluene was carried out in a bipolar packed-bed electrode cell in which graphite pellets of diameter 4.74 mm and length 5mm were randomly packed in nine layers separated by inert mesh spacers.

Abstract: The side chain methoxylation ofp-tert-butyltoluene was carried out in a bipolar packed-bed electrode cell in which graphite pellets of diameter 4.74 mm and length 5mm were randomly packed in nine layers separated by inert mesh spacers. The reaction consisted of main consecutive reactions leading top-tert-butylbenzyl methyl ether andp-tert-butylbenzaldehyde dimethyl acetal (TBDA) and polymerization reactions. Overall reaction rate coefficients for each reaction step, current efficiency and energy consumption were determined on the basis of a reactor model. The selectivity and the current efficiency for TBDA increased with increasing current, but the energy consumption began to rise when the current exceeded 0.8 A. An addition of supporting electrolyte suppressed the overall reaction rate coefficients, although it decreased the energy consumption.