A PROCESS FOR THE PREPARATION OF A TRIMER ACIDS PRODUCT OF IMPROVED COLOUR

摘要

In a process for the preparation of a trimer acids product of improved (lighter) colour than the starting product, a highly viscous trimer acids product of dark colour (Gardner colour (1963) greater than 13) is mixed with an amount of monocarboxylic acid which is sufficent to obtain a mixture of trimer acids and monocarboxylic acids having a viscosity low enough to allow in a following step of the process hydrogenation of the mixture of trimer acids and monocarboxylic acids in the presence of a hydrogenation catalyst and ready removal of the catalyst after hydrogenation, after which the hydrogenated mixture is separated by distillation in a first fraction containing predominantly monocarboxylic acid and a second fraction comprising trimer acids of a colour which is substantially lighter (Gardner colour (1963) smaller than 9) than the colour of the trimer acids starting product.