AmberLyst 15 WET

Summary

Product identification

• Product Name: DuPont™ AmberLyst™ 15WET Polymeric Catalyst
• Type: Industrial-grade, Strongly Acidic Catalyst
• Description: Strongly acidic, sulfonic acid, macroporous polymeric catalyst based on crosslinked styrene-divinylbenzene copolymers. Features a continuous open pore structure and excellent stability. Offers greater resistance to oxidants (chlorine, oxygen, chromates) than most other polymeric resins.

Applications

• Etherification (MTBE, ETBE, TAME)
• Olefin hydration (TBA)
• Esterification (acetates, acrylates, fatty acid esters)
• Removal or recovery of cationic impurities or bases from process liquors.

Typical Properties

Physical Properties

• Copolymer Matrix: Styrene-divinylbenzene
• Structure: Macroporous
• Type: Strong acid cation
• Functional Group: Sulfonic acid
• Physical Form: Amber, opaque, spherical beads
• Nitrogen BET Surface Area: 53 m²/g
• Total Pore Volume: 0.40 cc/g
• Average Pore Diameter: 300 Å
• Particle Size:
  • Particle Diameter: 600 – 850 µm
  • Uniformity Coefficient: ≤ 1.70
  • Fines (< 355 µm): ≤ 1.0%
  • Oversize (> 1180 µm): ≤ 5.0%
• Shrinkage (in solvent):
  • Methanol: 5%
  • MTBE: 9%
  • Hexane: 22%
  • Dry: 37%
• Shipping Weight: 770 g/L

Chemical Properties

• Ionic Form as Shipped: H⁺
• Concentration of Acid Sites:
  • ≥ 4.70 eq/kg (Dry Weight Capacity)
  • ≥ 1.80 eq/L (Total Exchange Capacity on a water-wet basis)
• Water Retention Capacity: 52 – 57%

Suggested Operating Conditions

• Maximum Operating Temperature: 120°C (248°F)
• Bed Depth, min.: 1000 mm (3.3 ft)
• Pressure Drop, max.: 1 bar (15 psig) across the bed
• Operating Flowrates: 1 – 40 BV*/h (0.125 – 5 gpm/ft³)
• Linear Hourly Space Velocity (LHSV): 0.5 – 5 h⁻¹
• Backwash: See Figure 1 in the official PDF.
• Regeneration Flowrate: 4 – 8 BV/h (0.5 – 1.0 gpm/ft³)
• Slow Rinse: Regeneration flowrate for 2 BV (15 gal/ft³)
• Fast Rinse: Operating flowrate for 2 – 4 BV (15 – 30 gal/ft³)
• Contact Time (Regeneration): ≥ 30 minutes
• Total Rinse Requirement: 3 – 5 BV

Regenerant

• HCl:
  • Concentration: 4 – 10%
  • Level: 40 – 100 kg/m³ (2.5 – 6.25 lb/ft³)
• H₂SO₄:
  • Concentration: 1 – 5%
  • Level: 40 – 200 kg/m³ (2.5 – 12.5 lb/ft³)

* 1 BV (Bed Volume) = 1 m³ solution per m³ resin or 7.5 gal per ft³ resin

Hydraulic Characteristics

• Estimated bed expansion as a function of backwash flowrate and temperature (10–90°C) is shown in Figure 1 in the official PDF.
• Estimated pressure drop as a function of service flowrate and temperature (10–90°C) is shown in Figure 2 in the official PDF. These expectations are valid at the start of a service run with clean water and a well-classified bed.

Product Stewardship

DuPont expresses concern for those who make, distribute, and use its products, and for the environment. This includes assessing safety, health, and environmental information and taking appropriate steps to protect health and the environment.

Customer Notice

DuPont encourages customers to review their manufacturing processes and applications to ensure products are not used in unintended or untested ways. Technical support is available. Consult Safety Data Sheets (SDS) before use.

WARNING: Oxidizing agents such as nitric acid can attack organic ion exchange resins, potentially causing degradation or violent exothermic reactions. Consult knowledgeable sources before using strong oxidizing agents.

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Disclaimer: Extraction may miss figures, footnotes, or revisions. Contractual data must match the OEM PDF revision used on the project.

Official datasheet (PDF)

Lenntech datasheet mirror