Butyl alcohols oxidation

B. Lattice Silverfl 10)-Mediated tert-Butyl Alcohol Oxidation / 18... 

B. Lattice Silver(110)-Mediated fcrf-Butyl Alcohol Oxidation... 

Other oxidants of hexavalent chromium are chromyl chloride and di-/er/-butyl chromate. Chromyl chloride adsorbed on alumina-silica gel from its solution in dichloromethane oxidizes aliphatic and aromatic alcohols at room temperature within hours in 77-100% yields [675]. Di-tert-butyl chromate, prepared in situ from chromyl chloride in tert-butyl alcohol at -70 °C, gives comparable results under similar conditions [674. Di-tert-butyl chromate, prepared from chromium trioxide and tert-butyl alcohol, oxidizes primary aliphatic and aromatic alcohols to the corresponding aldehydes even at low temperatures (1-2 °C) [677, 678]. 

Butyl alcohol, oxidation to a,a,a, a -tetramethyltetramethylene glycol by hydrogen peroxide and ferrous sulfate, 90 ... 

To destroy metallic potassium, the same procedure and precautions as for sodium are used, except that the less reactive t-butyl alcohol is used in the proportion of 21 mL/g of metal. (CAUTION Potassium metal can form explosive peroxides. Metal that has formed a yellow oxide coating from exposure to air should not be cut with a knife, even when wet with a hydrocarbon, because an explosion can be promoted.) If the potassium is dissolving too slowly, a few percent of methanol can be added gradually to the refluxing r-butyl alcohol. Oxide-coated potassium sticks should be put directly into the flask and decomposed with f-butyl alcohol. The decomposition will require considerable time because of the low surface/volume ratio of the metal sticks. 

Normal butyl alcohol, propyl carbinol, n-butanol, 1-buianol, CH3CH2CH2CH2OH. B.p. 117 C. Manufactured by reduction of crotonaldehyde (2-buienal) with H2 and a metallic catalyst. Forms esters with acids and is oxidized first to butanal and then to butanoic acid. U.S. production 1978 300 000 tonnes. 

The method is basically an application of the Wacker oxidation except that the catalyst used is palladium acetate ( Pd(AcO)2 or Pd(02CCH3)2). the solvent is acetic acid or tert-butyl alcohol and the oxygen source is the previously suggested hydrogen peroxide (H202)[17]. 

Propylene oxide [75-56-9] is manufactured by either the chlorohydrin process or the peroxidation (coproduct) process. In the chlorohydrin process, chlorine, propylene, and water are combined to make propylene chlorohydrin, which then reacts with inorganic base to yield the oxide. The peroxidation process converts either isobutane or ethylbenzene direcdy to an alkyl hydroperoxide which then reacts with propylene to make propylene oxide, and /-butyl alcohol or methylbenzyl alcohol, respectively. Table 1 Hsts producers of propylene glycols in the United States. 

Methyl ethyl ketone, a significant coproduct, seems likely to arise in large part from the termination reactions of j -butylperoxy radicals by the Russell mechanism (eq. 15, where R = CH and R = CH2CH2). Since alcohols oxidize rapidly vs paraffins, the j -butyl alcohol produced (eq. 15) is rapidly oxidized to methyl ethyl ketone. Some of the j -butyl alcohol probably arises from hydrogen abstraction by j -butoxy radicals, but the high efficiency to ethanol indicates this is a minor source. 

An oxirane process utilizes ethylbenzene to make the hydroperoxide, which then is used to make propylene oxide [75-56-9]. The hydroperoxide-producing reaction is similar to the first step of cumene LPO except that it is slower (2,224,316—318). In the epoxidation step, a-phenylethyl alcohol [98-85-1] is the coproduct. It is dehydrated to styrene [100-42-5]. The reported 1992 capacity for styrene by this route was 0.59 X 10 t/yr (319). The corresponding propylene oxide capacity is ca 0.33 x 10 t/yr. The total propylene oxide capacity based on hydroperoxide oxidation of propylene [115-07-1] (coproducts are /-butyl alcohol and styrene) is 1.05 x 10 t/yr (225). 

The speed of the reaction depends both on the metal and on the alcohol, increasing as electropositivity iacreases and decreasiag with length and branching of the chain. Thus sodium reacts strongly with ethanol, but slowly with tertiary butyl alcohol. The reaction with alkaU metals is sometimes carried out ia ether, ben2ene, or xylene. Some processes use the metal amalgam or hydride iastead of the free metal. Alkaline earth metals and aluminum are often covered with an oxide film which hinders the reaction. 

Propylene oxide [75-56-9] (methyloxirane, 1,2-epoxypropane) is a significant organic chemical used primarily as a reaction intermediate for production of polyether polyols, propylene glycol, alkanolamines (qv), glycol ethers, and many other useful products (see Glycols). Propylene oxide was first prepared in 1861 by Oser and first polymerized by Levene and Walti in 1927 (1). Propylene oxide is manufactured by two basic processes the traditional chlorohydrin process (see Chlorohydrins) and the hydroperoxide process, where either / fZ-butanol (see Butyl alcohols) or styrene (qv) is a co-product. Research continues in an effort to develop a direct oxidation process to be used commercially. 

Another butadiene oxidation process to produce butanediol is based on the 1,4-addition of /-butyl hydroperoxide to butadiene (108). Cobalt on siHca catalyzes the first step. This is followed by hydrogenation of the resulting olefinic diperoxide to produce butanediol and /-butyl alcohol. 

The Arco Propylene Oxide Process produces /-butyl alcohol as a coproduct of propylene oxide [75-56-9] when isobutane is used as a starting material. 

The process can be modified to give predominandy or solely /-butyl alcohol. Thus, /-butyl hydroperoxide (and /-butyl alcohol) produced by oxidation of isobutane in the first step of the process can be decomposed under controlled, catalytic conditions to give gasoline grade /-butyl alcohol (GTBA) in high selectivity (19—22). 

Butyl glycol ethers, the largest volume derivatives of -butyl alcohol used ia solvent appHcations (10), are obtained from the reaction of 1-butanol with ethylene oxide. The most important of these derivatives, 2-butoxyethanol, is used principally ia vinyl and acryHc paints as well as ia lacquers and varnishes. It is also employed ia aqueous cleaners to solubilize organic surfactants. 2-Butoxyethanol [111-76-2] has achieved some growth at the expense of the lower alkoxyethanols (ie, methoxy and ethoxyethanol) because of 2-butoxyethanol s lower toxicity. 

Butyl alcohol is employed as a feedstock in Japan to make methyl methacrylate monomer. In one such process (26), the alcohol is oxidized (in two steps) to acryHc acid, which is then esterified with methanol. In a similar process (27), /-butyl alcohol is oxidized in the presence of ammonia to give methacrylonitrile [126-98-7]. The latter is hydrolyzed to methacrjiamide [79-39-0] which then reacts with methanol to yield methyl methacrylate [80-62-6]. 

The glycol ethers obtained from /-butyl alcohol and propylene oxide, eg, l-/-butoxy-2-propanol, have lower toxicities than the widely employed 2-butoxyethanol and are used in industrial coatings and to solubiHze organic components in aqueous formulations (28). 

Oxirane Process. In Arco s Oxirane process, tert-huty alcohol is a by-product in the production of propylene oxide from a propjiene—isobutane mixture. Polymer-grade isobutylene can be obtained by dehydration of the alcohol. / fZ-Butyl alcohol [75-65-0] competes directly with methyl-/ fZ-butyl ether as a gasoline additive, but its potential is limited by its partial miscibility with gasoline. Current surplus dehydration capacity can be utilized to produce isobutylene as more methyl-/ fZ-butyl ether is diverted as high octane blending component. 

Because of limitations on the ready availability of HCN, particularly in Japan, processes involving the oxidation of C4 intermediates have been developed and are now replacing the older route developed by Crawford. One important process is based on the two-stage oxidation of isobutylene or -butyl alcohol to methacrylic acid, which is then separated and esterified Figure 15.5a). 

On autoxidation by aeration in tertiary butyl alcohol containing potassium tert-butyl oxide, quininone yields quininic acid (98 per cent.) and meroquinenine terf-butyl ester, CgHi N. CO. O. C4H9, b.b. 127°/20 mm., dj 0-9832, [a]o° -(- 50-0° (EtOH), identified by hydrolysis to meroquinenine (meroquinene) and eonversion of this to the better-known ethyl ester (p. 438). (Doering and Chanley.)... 

On oxidation with permanganate, methylharmaline is converted into a neutral substance, CiaHj O Na, m.p. 228°, which, on reduction with sodium and n-butyl alcohol yields A -methyltetrahydronorharmine (XVII),... 

Direct non-catalytic liquid-phase oxidation of isobutylene to isobutylene oxide gave low yield (28.7%) plus a variety of oxidation products such as acetone, ter-butyl alcohol, and isobutylene glycol ... 

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