DEHYDROCOUPLING OF TOLUENE

20-21-0143A DEHYDROCOUPLING OF TOLUENE ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Toluene dehydrocoupled products are produced by heating toluene in the vapor phase with an inorganic metal/ oxygen composition which functions as an oxygen carrier and has the empirical formula: where M1 is at least one element selected from silver, zinc, gallium, indium, thallium, germanium, phosphorus, arsenic, thorium, the lanthanides, Groups 1a, 2a, 3b, 4b, and 8 of the Periodic Table of the Elements, and mixtures thereof, and M2 is an element selected from bismuth and antimony, and wherein a is 0.01 to 10, b is 0 to 10, and x is a num-ber taken to satisfy the average valences of lead, M1 and M2 in the oxidation states in which they exist in the com-position to yield the toluene dehydrocoupled toluene pro-duct, with the proviso that when M2 is bismuth, M1 cannot be gallium or thallium; and when M2 is antimony, M1 can-not be indium, thallium, germanium, phosphorus, or thorium. Alternatively, the same inorganic metal/oxygen composition can be employed as a catalyst or as a combination catalyst/ oxygen carrier for the dehydrocoupling reaction when oxy-gen or an oxygen-containing gas is heated with the toluene.