Tosoh Corporation

Hideyuki Niwa

Takanori Miyake

Motohiro Oguri

Michiyuki Hamada

A phenol is produced by reacting an aromatic compound with oxygen and hydrogen in the liquid phase in the presence of a catalyst comprising a noble metal of group VIII of the periodic table, which is supported on a carrier, and in the co-presence of a vanadium compound. The reaction is carried out either (i) by using as the catalyst a catalyst containing 0% to 0.15% by weight, based on the weight of the catalyst, of halogens, or (ii) further in the co-presence of a diketone compound of the following formula (1) or (2): ##STR1## wherein R.sup.1 and R.sup.2 independently represents an aryl or alkyl group, which group may have a substituent, ##STR2##

Growing community of inventors

Yokkaichi, Japan

Hideyuki Niwa