Shell Oil Comapny

Thomas H Colby

Edgar J Smutny

Walter Dong

William R Durland

Ernest R Freitas

Cyanohydrins or a solution thereof in an inert solvent are stabilized by treatment with organophosphoric acids.

Stabilization of cyanohydrins

3-Phenoxybenzaldehyde is prepared by adding, at a relatively low temperature, a mixture of a 3-phenoxybenzyl halide and a 3-phenoxybenzal halide to a mixture of hexamethylenetetramine, acetic acid and water, the amounts of the water and acid bearing certain relationships to the amount of the mixture of halides, then heating the resulting mixture to a specified temperature level and maintaining it at that level for a specified period of time.

Preparation of 3-phenoxybenzaldehyde

Meta-phenoxytoluene is prepared by treating particular mixtures of sodium and potassium meta-cresylates with an excess of chlorobenzene, under essentially anhydrous conditions, in the presence of meta-cresol, and cuprous chloride as catalyst, at temperatures within the range of from about 150.degree. C. to about 170.degree. C.

Preparation of meta-phenoxytoluene

An improved process is disclosed for the preparation of 2-chloro-4-ethylamino-6-isopropylamino-s-triazine wherein two of the three chlorine atoms on cyanuric chloride are replaced with ispropylamino and ethylamino substituents by sequential reaction of cyanuric chloride in a mixed acetone/water solvent system with isopropylamine and ethylamine, respectively, in the presence of an alkali metal hydroxide acid acceptor. In this improved process, the formation of undesired 2-chloro-4,6-bis(ethylamino)- and 2-chloro-4,6-bis(isopropylamino)-s-triazine impuritiesis minimized by carrying out the initial chloride replacement reaction with an excess of cyanuric chloride over the stoichiometric amount and subsequently treating the reaction product from this initial chlorine replacement reaction with sufficient base to convert the unreacted cyanuric chloride to a water soluble basic salt of monohydroxydichloro-s-triazine followed, optionally and preferably, by phase separation of the aqueous solvent phase to remove at least a portion of the basic salt of monohydroxydichloro-s-triazine from the reaction mixture prior to the second chlorine replacement reaction.

Growing community of inventors

Houston, TX, United States of America

Thomas H Colby