This paper reports the influence of alkylation reaction byproducts, particularly HCl, on MOF-5. Reaction between tert-butyl chloride and toluene or biphenyl in the presence of MOF-5 as a catalyst generates an unusual structural transformation which was proved to be due to the formation of byproduct HCl by means of powder X-ray diffraction analysis. Despite this, the highly desirable catalytic performance in terms of high conversions (>99%) and selectivity (>98%) toward the less bulky para-oriented products is maintained.
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