Oxidation of hydrocarbons in the liquid phase: n-dodecane in a borosilicate glass chamber at 200 °C

Abstract

The 5-h oxidation of n-dodecane at 200 °C by air at 1 atm is reported for experiments in a borosilicate glass reaction chamber equipped with a gas bubbler. The rate of reaction was limited by the rate of oxygen diffusion from the gas phase due to the rapid reaction of dissolved oxygen. The reaction products were analyzed in aliquots taken periodically from the reaction chamber. Chemical analyses, gas–liquid phase chromatography (g.l.p.c.), tandem g.l.p.c.-mass spectroscopy, infrared, and ultraviolet were used to identify products accounting for 98% of the oxygen reacted. The isomer distribution of the dodecenes, dodecanols, and dodecanones formed, as well as the distribution of carboxylic acids, were determined. Three classes of intramolecular reaction products, cyclic ethers, cyclic hydrocarbons, and lactones, were detected. Many volatile products were detected. A filterable precipitate obtained after 10 h of oxidation was studied using infrared attenuated total reflectance techniques. A reaction mechanism is discussed based on current knowledge of other systems, the products identified, and the stoichiometry of the reaction.