Sumitomo Chemical Company, Limited

Kazushige Okamoto

Motoo Hazama

Kiyoshi Ikimi

Tooru Tokumaru

Akira Murakami

Yoichi Ikeda

Kunihisa Satoh

Process for producing aromatic polyethers with high molecular weights

There is disclosed a process for the production of cresols, including the steps of: (a) conducting oxygenation of cymene with oxygen gas or an oxygen-containing gas, thereby obtaining a solution of oxygenation products containing tertiary and primary hydroperoxides of cymene; (b) reacting the solution of oxygenation products obtained in the step (a) with an organic quaternary ammonium salt and an alkali, or with an organic quaternary ammonium hydroxide, thereby decreasing the content of primary hydroperoxide; (c) subjecting the reaction mixture in the step (b) to decomposition in the presence of a catalyst; and (d) subjecting the decomposition mixture in the step (c) to hydrogenation, thereby obtaining the desired cresols.

Process for production of cresols

There is disclosed a process for the production of cresols, including the steps of: (a) conducting oxygenation of cymene with oxygen gas or an oxygen-containing gas without any addition of an alkali, thereby obtaining a solution of oxygenation products containing tertiary and primary hydroperoxides of cymene; (b) washing the solution of oxygenation products obtained in step (a) with an aqueous alkali solution at a temperature in the range of from 10.degree. to 95.degree. C.; (c) subjecting the solution of oxygenation products obtained in step (b) to hydrogenation at a temperature in the range of from 60.degree. to 100.degree. C. to decrease the content of primary hydroperoxide in such a manner that the weight ratio of primary hydroperoxide to tertiary hydroperoxide is not greater than 1/25 (w/w); (d) subjecting the solution treated in step (c) to decomposition in the presence of a catalyst; and (e) subjecting the solution treated in step (d) to hydrogenation to obtain cresols.

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Oita, Japan

Kazushige Okamoto