Catalysis of the Kemp elimination by natural goals

[GRAPHICS] Commercially available coals were found to be efficient heterogeneous catal ysts of the Kemp elimination reaction in aqueous solutions. A pH-rate profi le study suggests that catalysis originates from specific catalytic groups and not simply from the large graphitic surface area. The low quality ligni te coals, which exhibit similar catalytic efficiency per weight to that of molecularly imprinted polymers, are better catalysts for this reaction in c omparison with the bituminous coals.