Dehydrocoupling of toluene

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: Ma1Mb2Ox where M1 is bismuth and M2 is at least one element selected from zinc, germanium, thorium, the lanthanides or rare earths, Groups 1a, 3b, 4b, and 8 of the Periodic Table of the Elements, and mixtures thereof, and wherein a is 1, b is 0.01 to 10 and x is a number taken to satisfy the average valences of M1 and M2 in the oxidation states in which they exist in the composition. 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 oxygen or an oxygen-containing gas is heated with the toluene.