Nitration of Toluene with Fluorous Biphasic System

Toluene was nitrated effectively in fluorous phase in the presence of ytterbium (Ⅲ) perfluorooctanesulfonate (Yb(OSO2C8F17)3) catalyst. Perfluorodecalin(C10F18) was used as a fluorous solvent for this reaction. By simple separation,the fluorous phase containing catalyst has been recovered and reused for a number of times ,p/o ( ratio of p-isomer to o- isomer) of the nitration product was increased to 0.92. Effects of reaction temperature, the ratio of VPFC/Vorganic solvent and the water in the reaction system on the nitration were investigated. It was observed that the optimum temperature for fluorous biphasic nitration of toluene was 80 ℃. Simultaneously, increasing the ratio of VPFC/ Vorganic solvent can enhance p/o ratio.