Oligomerisation of linear 1-olefins using a chlorogallate(III) ionic liquid

Atkins, Martin P.; Seddon, Kenneth R.; Swadźba‑Kwaśny, Małgorzata

doi:10.1351/PAC-CON-10-12-03

Pure Appl. Chem., 2011, Vol. 83, No. 7, pp. 1391-1406

http://dx.doi.org/10.1351/PAC-CON-10-12-03

Published online 2011-06-10

Oligomerisation of linear 1-olefins using a chlorogallate(III) ionic liquid

Martin P. Atkins¹, Kenneth R. Seddon²* and Małgorzata Swadźba‑Kwaśny²*

¹ PETRONAS Research Sdn Bhd, Lot 3288&3289, Off Jalan Ayer Itam, Kawasan Institusi Bangi, 43000, Kajang, Malaysia
² QUILL, The Queen’s University of Belfast, Belfast, BT9 5AG, UK

Abstract: A Lewis acidic chlorogallate(III) ionic liquid, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium hepta-chlorodigallate(III), [C₂mim][Ga₂Cl₇], was successfully used to oligomerise 1-pentene. The influence of temperature, time, catalyst concentration, and stirring rate on conversion and product distribution was modelled using a design of experiment (DoE) approach (chemo-metrics). The process was optimised for lubricant base oils production; the C20–C50 fraction (where Cn indicates the number of carbons in the oligomer) was maximised, while the heavier oligomer fraction (>C50) was minimised.