Exxonmobil Chemical Patents Inc.

Jean-Jacques G Muls

Eddy Theophile Van Driessche

Charles Morris Yarbrough

Arie Van Vliet

Carl Robert Beck

Allen David Godwin

Raphael Frans Caers

Mauritz Kelchtermans

Embodiments of the invention disclosed herein relate to a process for the production of a C-Calcohol mixture comprising the steps of: hydroformylating an olefin mixture comprising a branched C-Colefin to form a hydroformylation product comprising aldehydes and formate esters, whereby the hydroformylation product has a net cold sap number from 15 to 38 mg KOH/g, and converting the aldehydes and formate esters to alcohols in a hydrogenation step comprising at least one first hydrogenation reactor comprising a fixed bed of a heterogeneous sulphided bimetallic catalyst.

Plasticiser alcohol and production improvement

Oxo-alcohols in the plasticizer range typically contain small amounts of methyl esters having the same alkyl chain as the alcohol itself. These methyl esters are causing product quality problems and environmental problems because of transesterification in the esterification process where the plasticizer ester derivatives are produced. A process using controlled oxonation and hydrogenation conditions is disclosed for the production of alcohols containing low amounts of methyl esters. Plasticizer esters with low amounts of aliphatic di-alkyl esters are also disclosed.

Mixtures of Cprimary alcohols, preferably Calcohol rich, comprise from 15 to 70 wt. % unbranched molecules, the balance being branched molecules having an average branchiness of at most 2.00 branches per molecule, at least 80% of the ranches being methyl branches and at least 50% of the branched molecules being mono-methyl branched. Plasticiser esters and surfactant derivatives derived from these alcohol mixtures are also provided. The alcohol mixtures are preferably produced by hydroformylation of octene rich streams formed by Fischer-Tropsch synthesis.

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Wemmel, Belgium

Jean-Jacques G Muls