Study on a Novel Process for the Synthesis of P‐Xylene by Selectivity Intensification in Benzene Alkylation with Methanol

Abstract The alkylation reaction process of benzene with methanol was researched by Aspen Plus simulation based on the reaction kinetics data of modified ZSM‐5 catalyst. A novel production process was proposed for the alkylation of benzene with methanol to prepare p‐xylene (PX) based on selectivity intensification. The results showed that the selectivity of PX based on process optimization was more than 99.7 %. Selectivity intensification of PX production process could eliminate the separation of o‐xylene and m‐xylene, which owned the characteristics of high raw material utilization, low energy consumption and good economy. The research of current process could provide technical guidance for the production process of PX by alkylation of benzene with methanol, and help to form a new pattern of complementary and coordinated development of coal chemical and petrochemical technologies by using non‐petroleum‐based methanol and benzene surplus in the petroleum production chain.