The staged synthesis of 2-methylimidazole from ethylenediamine and acetic acid in the presence of a bifunctional aluminoplatinum catalyst

An investigation has been conducted into the staged synthesis of 2-methylimidazole from ethylenediamine and acetic acid in the presence of a bifunctional aluminoplatinum catalyst. It has been shown that the formation stage of 2-methylimidazoline occurs more quickly on -Al₂O₃ than its dehydrogenation on the Pt centers. From a comparison of the processes of dehydrogenation of 2-methylimidazoline in the molten phase and in aqueous solution it follows that the water eliminated in the imidazoline formation stage could cause the decrease in activity during the dehydrogenation on the Pt centers. The structures of the secondary and intermediate products have been established for each stage of the process and their formation routes are discussed.N. D. Zelinskii Institute of Organic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117913 Moscow. Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 9, pp. 1997–2002, September, 1992.