Abstract

Production of cumene was considered a rather dull business for many years, but has generated considerable excitement recently for two reasons. First, the demand for cumene in the production of polycarbonates is accelerating, owing to the broadening applications of polycarbonates. Second, successful development and commercialization of the zeolite-based technology for the production of cumene has rendered obsolete the older processes based on solid phosphoric acid and aluminum chloride. Within a period of just over 2 years during 1996–1998, over one-half of the cumene capacity in the world was converted to the new technology. This article provides technical insights into the successful new zeolite-based process, as well as the older processes based on solid phosphoric acid and aluminum chloride.