Thallium salt catalysed propylene oxide prepn. - by reacting propylene with water in presence of alkanoic carboxylic acids

摘要

Propylene oxide is prepd. by contacting propylene with a thallium salt in the presence of water and a >=5C alkanoic monocarboxylic acid (I). Presence of (I) reduces formation of acetone more effectively than when using alkanoic acids contg. 5C. (I) is pref. a cpd. of formula R1R2R3C-COOH or its halogen deriv. (where R1-3 are H, alkyl, aryl, cycloalkyl, alkaryl or aralkyl or derivatives of these gps. where a non-carbonyl C atom is replaced by O). Suitably (I) is water immiscible. It may have a water solubility at 25 degrees C of 8g/100g water and is pref. branched, or it may have at 20 degrees C a water solubility of 4g/100g water.