Ethane slow combustion

Oxidation of Hydrocarbons. Ethanol is one of a variety of oxygen-containing compounds produced by the oxidation of hydrocarbons. Ethanol is reported to be obtained in a yield of 51% by the slow combustion of ethane (158,159). When propane is oxidi2ed at 350°C under a pressure of 17.2 MPa (170 atm) (160,161), 8% of the oxygen is converted to ethanol. Lower conversions to ethanol are obtained by oxidi2ing butane. Other oxidation systems used to produce ethanol and acetaldehyde (162—164) and methods for separating the products have been described in the patent Hterature. 

In the slow combustion of ethane, on the other hand, ethyl alcohol has actually been detected amongst the oxidation products,1 and an analogous scheme is suggested 2 to that for methane. Thus ... 

Early studies of slow combustion and ignition characteristics of organic compounds showed that although methanol, ethanol and propanol are more readily oxidized than methane, ethane and propane, the situation is reversed with butanol and the higher homologues [1—4]. 

Newitt DM, Bloch AM. The slow combustion of ethane at high pressures. Proc R Soc 1933 A140 426—39. Newitt DM, Schmidt WG. The oxidation of propane. Part n. The products of the slow oxidation at high pressure. J Chem Soc 1937 1665—9. 

Newitt DM, Gardner JB. The initial formation of alcohols during the slow combustion of methane and ethane at atmospheric pressure. Proc R Soc 1936 A154 329—35. 

Individually, the radical-initiation reactions 6.1-6.3 are too slow and thermodynamically disfavored, dne to their significant endothermicities, to effect combustion on their own. For example, consider the initiation reactions of 6.1-6.3 with ethane (CH3-CH3) as the fnel ... 

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