Pyridinium-Based Paramagnetic Room-Temperature Ionic Liquid for Effective Removal of Trace Olefins from Aromatics

A magnetically separable catalyst n-butylpyridinium tetrachloroferrate ([C4py]FeCl4) was designed for the removal of  trace olefins from aromatic hydrocarbons. The magnetic ionic liquid was prepared via a facile synthetic route and well characterized by FTIR, TGA/DTG, DTA, UV–Visible, and Raman techniques. Then, the effects of different reaction parameters such as molar ratio, reaction temperature, reaction time, and the reusability of the ionicliquid were investigated. It was found that the ionic liquid ([C4py] FeCl4) with 5 wt% of the catalyst at 70 °C for 12 min., exhibited a better performance for olefin removal.The magnetic IL was easily removed from solution using an external magnet, allowing efficiently recovery and without work-up or purification processes.