Synthesis of 4-tertiarbutyl catechol (TBC) using ionexchange resin as a catalyst

4- Tertiarybutyl catechol (TBC) is classified as a two-valance phenolic antioxidant, which can be used in greases, industrial oils, and polyurethanes as polymerization inhibitor and thermal stablizer. This compound scavenges radicals and prevents the chain reaction from proceeding. Also this compound is used in BD (butadiene) unit as an antioxidant. In this paper we report a practical procedure for the synthesis of TBC using catechol and isobutylene in the presence of an ion exchange resin as a catalyst in good yield. Important parameters in the reaction are catalyst, temperature, and reaction time and flow gas. The reaction and product formation are monitored by thin layer chromatography, gas chromatography (GC), FT-IR and FT-HNMR spectroscopy. Reaction yield is 84.9% and products purity after distillation at low pressure above 95% and greater than purity of available standard TBC that equals to 95%. This purity is high enough for industrial application of TBC.