US Patent 7019185 Aromatic alkylation process

In a method for producing monoalkylated aromatic compounds, an aromatic feed is contacted with an alkylating agent in the presence of a catalyst comprising a molecular sieve having an X-ray diffraction pattern including d-spacing maxima at 12.4±0.25, 6.9±0.15, 3.57±0.07, and 3.42±0.07 Angstrom. The catalyst also contains at least one metal cation selected from Groups 1–4 and 7–16 of the Periodic Table of Elements, wherein the metal cation is present in an amount of at least 0.5% by weight of the catalyst, whereby selectivity of the catalyst to produce monoalkylates over polyalkylates is improved as compared with the identical catalyst but without the metal cation present.