Importance of small amount of water in solid-liquid phase transfer catalysis: Reaction of benzyl chloride with solid sodium sulphide

Abstract

The reactions of benzyl chloride with solid sodium sulphide were carried out in the presence of two different phase transfer catalysts. The rate of reaction was found to vary non-linearly with catalyst concentration in both the cases. This was explained in terms of phase transfer catalyst-promoted dehydration of the solid reactant. The phenomenon was also explained theoretically which proved the importance of small amount of water in solid-liquid phase transfer catalysis.