Process for the preparation of naphthoquinone

摘要

Naphthoquinone is prepared by oxidising naphthalene with cerium(IV) sulphate at temperatures above the melting point of naphthalene. To this end, the reaction mixture is subjected to rapid motion. Sulphuric acid is present in the reaction mixture, while an organic solvent is absent. Conventional processes using cerium oxidants do not achieve the high yields which can be obtained according to the invention.