Basf Aktiengesellschaft

Badische Anilin- & Soda-fabrik Aktiengesellschaft

Peter Tavs

Harald Laas

Hans Juergen Nienburg

Wilhelm Kniese

Norbert Goetz

Rudolf Kummer

Leopold Hupfer

Manfred Stroezel

Franz J Broecker

Heinz Hannebaum

Karl Baer

Lothar Arnold

Wolf-Karlo Aders

Horst Schauer

The yield of 2,5,6-trimethyl-cyclohex-2-en-1-one is increased by reacting diethyl ketyone, in the presence of an alkali, with crotonaldehyde or a compound which is converted to crotonaldehyde under the reaction conditions chose, and working up the reaction mixture by distillation, by a method in which the distillation residue obtained is either

Increasing the yield of 2.5.6-trimethylcyclohex-2-en-1-one

2,3,6-Trimethylhydroquinone is prepared by catalytic hydrogenation of 2,3,6-trimethylquinone with hydrogen in the presence of a solvent by a continuous process in which the reaction is carried out over a platinum/alumina catalyst.

Preparation of trimethylhydroquinone

Improved process for the preparation of salcomine useful as an oxidation catalyst for the oxidation of alkylated phenols to the corresponding alkylated p-benzoquinones by reacting salicylaldehyde with ethylenediamine in a mole ratio of about 2:1 and a cobalt salt in a liquid reaction medium wherein the reaction medium is a linear or cyclic carboxamide which is disubstituted on the nitrogen, in particular dimethylformamide, and the cobalt salt is cobalt carbonate or with the cobalt hyroxide carbonate, 2 CoCO.sub.3.3 Co(OH).sub.2.H.sub.2 O. Preparation of the salcomine in accordance with the invention offers significant advantages, both in the preparation of the salcomine itself and in the subsequent oxidation of the trimethylphenol to trimethyl-p-benzoquinone utilizing the salcomine.

Process for the preparation of a

Substituted phenols of the general formula I ##STR1## where R.sup.1, R.sup.2, R.sup.3, R.sup.4 and R.sup.5 are each hydrogen or an aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon radical, are prepared by dehydrogenating a cyclic alcohol of the general formula II ##STR2## or a cyclic ketone of the general formula III ##STR3## where one of the broken lines can be an additional C-C bond, in the gas phase at from 150.degree. to 380.degree. C. over a supported noble metal catalyst, by a process in which the dehydrogenation catalyst used is palladium or platinum on an aluminum spinel carrier, in particular an aluminum spinel which has a BET specific surface area of from 5 to 150 m.sup.2 /g or, for the dehydrogenation of cyclohexenones, preferably from 10 to 50 m.sup.2 /g. Particularly suitable aluminum spinels are those which, in addition to aluminum, contain magnesium, zinc, cobalt or nickel. In the novel process, substituted phenols are obtained in high yields and selectivities, and the catalyst has an extremely long life without a significant decrease in activity.

Preparation of substituted phenols

Production of aldehydes and alcohols by hydroformylation of olefinically unsaturated compounds with carbon monoxide and hydrogen at elevated temperature and superatmospheric pressure in the presence of carbonyl complexes of metals of group 8 of the Periodic System which have been modified with trisubstituted phosphines in which two substituents are lower alkyl radicals and the third substituent is a higher aliphatic radical. Aldehydes and alcohols are known to be solvents; they are used on a large scale for the production of plasticizers for polyvinyl chloride.

Production of aldehydes and alcohols by the oxo method

An improved process for the production of aldehydes and alcohols by the oxo process comprising the reaction of olefinically unsaturated compounds with carbon monoxide and hydrogen at elevated temperatures and elevated pressures in the presence of carbonyl complexes of metals in Group VIII of the Periodic Table modified by trisubstituted organic phosphines and in the presence of alkali or alkaline earth metal salts of carboxylic acids, the improvement comprising the use of modifying agents which consist of trisubstituted organic phosphines containing one or more carboxylic acid groups, at least one of which is present in the form of its alkali metal or alkaline earth metal salt.

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Limburgerhof, Germany

Peter Tavs