Produits Chimiques Ugine Kuhlmann

P C U K Produits Chimiques Ugine Kuhlmann

Jean-Claude Lecoq

Jean-Pierre Schirmann

Michele Pralus

Edouard Grimaud

Process for manufacturing .SIGMA.- caprolactone by oxidation of cyclohexanone by means of a crude C.sub.2 -C.sub.4 percarboxylic acid solution, resulting from the reaction of hydrogen peroxide on the corresponding carboxylic acid in the presence of a weak acid catalyst, with continuous elimination of water by azeotropic entrainment, characterized in that the molar ratio of cyclohexanone used to the percarboxylic acid is between about 0.50 to 0.99.

Process for the preparation of epsilon-caprolactone

This invention relates to a process for the preparation of stable solutions of .epsilon.-caprolactone by means of the oxidation of cyclohexanone by a percarboxylic acid containing 2 to 4 carbon atoms. According to the invention, the percarboxylic acid is in the form of a crude solution, such as that resulting from the reaction of hydrogen peroxide with the corresponding carboxylic acid in the presence of a boric acid catalyst with the continuous elimination of water by azeotropic entrainment.

Process for the preparation of .epsilon.-caprolactone

Process of preparing substantially anhydrous solutions of percarboxylic acids which comprises reacting hydrogen peroxide contained in an aqueous solution with a water miscible carboxylic acid in the presence of a catalyst and an azeotropic organic solvent, continuously removing the water added with the hydrogen peroxide and formed during the reaction by azeotropic distillation by way of a distillation column, and continuously injecting water into the top of the distillation column during at least the major portion of the reaction time, the quantity of the injected water being less than the quantity of the water removed by azeotrope distillation.

Process for the preparation of percarboxylic acids

Processes for treating the waste water, particularly waste water containing certain unsaturated compounds, from acrolein and acrylic acid production plants to reduce the chemical oxygen demand (COD), which processes comprise polymerizing the unsaturated compounds, desirably with peroxygen compounds; neutralizing the waste water with a reagent forming polyvalent metal ions to provide salts of the polymerized compounds; and separating the salts so formed.

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Chaponost, France

Jean-Claude Lecoq