摘要 |
<p>Improved Methanol Carbonylation Process An alcohol such as methanol is reacted with carbon monoxide in a liquid reaction medium containing a rhodium catalyst stabilized with an iodide salt, especially lithium iodide, along with alkyd iodide such as methyl iodide and alkyd acetate such as methyl acetate in specified proportions. With a finite concentration of water in the reaction medium the product is the carboxylic acid instead of, for example, the anhydride. The present reaction system not only provides an acid product of unusually low water content at unexpectedly favorable reaction rates but also, whether the water content is low or, as in the case of prior-art acetic acid technology, relatively high, is characterized by unexpectedly high catalyst stability; i.e., it is resistant to catalyst precipitation out of the reaction medium.</p> |