text: Modified zeolite on which the external surface was partly covered with alkylsilane, called phase-boundary catalyst was prepared in two steps. First, titanium dioxide made from titanium isopropoxide was impregnated into NaY zeolite powder to give sample W-Ti-NaY. In the second step, alkysilane from n-octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) was impregnated into the W-Ti-NaY powder containing water. Due to the hydrophilicity of the w-Ti-NaY surface, addition of a small amount of water led to aggregation owing to the capillary force of water between particles. Under these conditions, it is expected that only the outer surface of aggregates, in contact with the organic phase can be modified with OTS, and indeed almost all of the particles were located at the phase boundary when added to an immiscible water–organic solvent (W/O) mixture. The partly modified sample is denoted w/o-Ti-NaY. Fully modified Ti-NaY (o-Ti-NaY), prepared without the addition of water in the above second step, is readily suspended in an organic solvent as expected.