Process for the manufacture of carbonyl compounds

摘要

Carbonyl compounds, namely aldehydes and ketones with some carboxylic acid, are obtained by reacting an olefine with molecular oxygen in the presence of a neutral to acid aqueous liquid catalyst containing a salt of a metal which can exhibit different valencies under the reaction conditions and is capable of being reduced to a salt of lower valency, so that the olefine and part of the oxygen are contacted with the catalyst in a reaction zone and some of the oxygen is contacted with the catalyst in a catalyst regeneration zone, the quantity of the liquid catalyst being passed in unit time to the reaction zone being greater or smaller than that passed in unit time through the regeneration zone. Preferably a subsidiary stream of liquid catalyst is withdrawn from the main liquid catalyst after leaving the reaction zone or regeneration zone and is returned to the reaction zone or regeneration zone respectively. If desired more than one subsidiary stream may be withdrawn from different parts of the catalyst stream. The preferred catalysts are those containing a copper salt and advantageous a salt of a noble metal, particularly palladium. In addition a salt of iron, chromium, manganese or cerium may also be present. Suitable anions are, for example, chlorine, bromine, chlorate, perchlorate or nitrate ions or a mixture of one or more of these with sulphate or acetate ions. Additional chlorine ions in the form of hydrogen chloride, acetyl chloride, ethyl chloride, tertiary butyl chloride or bromine trichloride are advantageously added. The pH value is preferably within the range 0.8-5.0 and the preferred temperature range is 50-160 DEG C. in both the reaction and catalyst regeneration zones which are not necessarily at the same temperature. The process may be used, for example, for converting ethylene to acetaldehyde and acetic acid, propylene to acetone and propionaldehyde, butylenes to methylethyl ketone, butyraldehyde or isobutyraldehyde and butadiene to diacetyl and crotonaldehyde. Specifications 898,790, 900,829, 922,694, 938,831, 938,832, 938,833 and 938,834 are referred to.