The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 20, 2001
Filed:
Jun. 29, 2000
BASF Aktiengesellschaft, , DE;
Abstract
A process is described for the production of butane-1,4-diol, &ggr;-butyrolactone and/or tetrahydrofuran. A vaporous stream containing maleic anhydride, water, and carbon oxides is contact in an absorption zone with a high boiling ester as solvent to form a solution of maleic anhydride in the high boiling ester which has a boiling point at the atmospheric pressure at least about 30° C. higher than that of maleic anhydride and is selected from di-(C,to C,alkyl) esters of alkyl dicarboxylic acids containing up to 3 carbon atoms, mono- and di-(C,to C,alkyl) esters of maleic acid, fumaric acid, succinic acid, and mixtures thereof, (C,to C,alkyl) esters of naphthalene-monocarboxylic acids, tri-(C,to C,alkyl) esters of aromatic tricarboxylic acids, and di-(C,to C,alkyl) esters of isophthalic acid. The maleic anhydride in the solution is stripped with a gaseous stream containing hydrogen thereby forming a vaporous stream comprising hydrogen and maleic anhydride, which is contacted in a hydrogenation zone with a heterogeneous hydrogenation catalyst to convert maleic anhydride to at least one C,compound selected from butane-1,4-diol, &ggr;-butyrolactone and tetrahydrofuran.