Non-reductive dehydroxylation of vicinal compounds to olefins using a halogen-based catalyst

摘要

Olefins may be produced by the non-reductive dehydroxylation of vicinal polyols and/or their respective esters, in a liquid reaction medium, under a substantially non-reductive atmosphere, in the presence of a halogen-based, preferably iodine-based, catalyst. The reaction medium may be aqueous, non-aqueous, or a combination thereof, and may in some embodiments include a solubility enhancing agent.

主权项

1. A process for preparing an olefin comprising:
subjecting a material to a dehydroxylation in presence of an iodine-based catalyst and a liquid reaction medium comprising water to form an olefin; wherein the material is selected from the group consisting of vicinal polyols, esters of vicinal polyols, ethers of vicinal polyols, and combinations thereof; wherein the iodine-based catalyst is selected from the group consisting of I2 (iodine), HI (hydroiodic acid), LiI (lithium iodide) and combinations thereof; and wherein the process is operated under conditions including:
a non-reductive atmosphere having no more than 2 weight percent of a reductive gas, excluding hydrogen present in atmospheric water, if any;a temperature ranging from 50° C. to 250° C.; anda ratio of moles of the material to moles of the iodine atoms in the iodine-based catalyst ranging from 4:1 to 27:1.