Mitsubishi Chemical Industries Limited

Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation

Lion Corporation

Takeru Onoda

Masayuki Otake

Keisuke Wada

Tetsuo Masuyama

Jun Toriya

Hideki Yamanouchi

Ken Shiraga

Shimpei Tomita

Kenji Karube

Jutaro Yamaguchi

Hironori Kageyama

Akihisa Ohno

Methacrylic acid is produced by oxidative dehydrogenation of isobutyric acid in vapor phase in the presence of a lithium salt of a heteropolyacid or a reduced form of the heteropolyacid.

Process for producing methacrylic acid

A cobalt component is separated from a hydroesterification reaction mixture obtained by reacting a polyhydric alcohol with an olefin and carbon monoxide in the presence of a cobalt carbonyl complex and a pyridine base, by contacting (a) pyridine or .gamma.-picoline and (b) water with said reaction mixture containing the cobalt component and the product of a fatty acid ester of the polyhydric alcohol to separate it into two phases consisting of a phase containing the fatty acid ester of polyhydric alcohol and a phase containing a cobalt component. In the process, the weight ratio of pyridine or .gamma.-picoline to the product ester is 0.5 to 5 and the weight ratio of water to pyridine or .gamma.-picoline is 0.05 to 10.

Process for separating cobalt component from hydroesterification

Diacetoxybutane is prepared by a process for hydrogenating diacetoxybutene in the presence of a supported hydrogenation catalyst comprising catalytically reacting diacetoxybutene with hydrogen continuously in an insulation reaction apparatus utilizing a fixed-bed of said hydrogenation catalyst, withdrawing the reaction effluent continuously from said reaction apparatus, circulating at least a part of said reaction effluent to said reaction apparatus while controlling the temperature of influx of said reaction apparatus at a temperature lower than the temperature of efflux from said reaction apparatus by 5.degree. to 100.degree. C.

Process for hydrogenation of diacetoxybutene

Heteropoly-acids suitable for use as a component of a variety of oxidation catalysts are prepared by hydrothermally reacting an aqueous slurry which contains an oxide and/or oxyacid each of molybdenum, vanadium and phosphorus and which may optionally contain an oxide and/or oxyacid of tungsten.

Process for preparing heteropoly-acids

Glycol monoethers are produced in high yields by reacting an acetal with carbon monoxide and hydrogen in the presence of a catalyst comprising a cobalt compound and a trivalent organic phosphorus compound or a bidentate chelate ligand containing nitrogen or oxygen. An aldehyde or a compound capable or releasing an aldehyde under reaction conditions and an alcohol can be used instead of the acetal.

Process for producing glycol monoether

Methacrylic acid is manufactured by oxidative dehydrogenation of isobutyric acid in vapor phase in the presence of a supported catalyst containing a heteropolyacid and/or a reduced form of the heteropolyacid. A highly siliceous material having a high water absorbability is used as a carrier for the catalyst to improve the conversion rate and selectivity as well as the catalyst durability.

Manufacture of methacrylic acid

In a process for producing an aldehyde by hydroformylation comprising reacting an olefin with carbon monoxide and hydrogen in the presence of a solution of a rhodium-tertiary phosphine complex catalyst and recycling the catalyst-containing solution to the reaction zone after recovering the aldehyde formed by distillation in a distillation zone, the catalyst inactivated by the hydroformylation is reactivated effectively by treating the catalyst-containing solution with carbon dioxide.

Process for producing aldehydes

A carboxylic ester of a substituted benzene compound having one or two hydroxymethyl groups on the benzene ring is prepared by reacting a benzene compound selected from the group consisting of toluene and xylene, an aliphatic carboxylic acid, and molecular oxygen in the gaseous phase, in the presence of a catalyst, wherein the improvement comprises reacting said reactants over a supported catalyst wherein the active constituents comprise (1) palladium, (2) an antimony component substantially as the oxide thereof and (3) at least one carboxylic acid salt of an alkali metal, alkaline earth metal, zinc, cadmium or lead, on a carrier.

Process for preparing a carboxylic ester

A methacrylate is prepared by reacting methacrylic acid and an alcohol in vapor phase in the presence of a catalyst. The catalyst is a solid acid catalyst of silica-titania obtained by coprecipitating the same from an aqueous solution of a silicon and a titanium compound.

Preparation of methacrylates

A carboxylic ester is prepared by reacting a hydrocarbon selected from monoolefins having 2 to 6 carbon atoms, benzene, toluene and xylene with an aliphatic saturated carboxylic acid having 2 to 4 carbon atoms and molecular oxygen in the vapor phase in the presence of a supported solid catalyst of palladium metal, an antimony component and a carboxylic acid salt of alkali metal, alkaline earth metal, zinc, cadmium, lead or tin, with the improvement comprising: adding said antimony compound to the support of said catalyst by dipping a carrier into an aqueous solution of water-soluble antimony compound selected from the group consisting of antimonic acid, antimonates and antimony complexes of organic acids.

Process for preparing carboxylic acid esters from toluene and xylene

A carboxylic ester is prepared by reacting a hydrocarbon selected from monoolefins having 2 to 6 carbon atoms, benzene, toluene and xylene with an aliphatic saturated carboxylic acid having 2 to 4 carbon atoms and molecular oxygen in the vapor phase in the presence of a supported solid catalyst of palladium metal, an antimony component and a carboxylic acid salt of alkali metal, alkaline earth metal, zinc, cadmium, lead or tin, with the improvement comprising: adding said antimony compound to the support of said catalyst by dipping a carrier into an aqueous solution of a water-soluble antimony compound selected from the group consisting of antimonic acid, antimonates and antimony complexes of organic acids.

A phenyl ester and/or phenol is prepared by reacting benzene, a carboxylic acid and molecular oxygen in the presence of an improved catalyst comprising palladium metal, an antimony component and least one carboxylic acid salt of zinc, cadmium, lead or tin supported on a carrier.

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Yokohama, Japan

Takeru Onoda