Ethylene oxide, preparation

TABLE 1. Physical Properties of Polyfethylene oxide-6-[(R)-3-hydroxybutyrate] diol-h-ethylene oxide Prepared by Transesterification of [(R)-3-hydroxybutyrate] with Methoxy Polyethylene Glycol... 

Nonan-l-ol (primary alcohol from ethylene oxide). Prepare a Grignard reagent from 24.5 g (1 mol) of magnesium turnings, 179 g (157 ml, 1 mol) of 1-bromoheptane (Expt 5.55) and 300 ml of dibutyl ether as described above. Cool the solution to 0°C and, with vigorous stirring, add an excess of ethylene oxide. Maintain the temperature to 0 °C for 1 hour after the ethylene oxide has been introduced, then allow the temperature to rise to 40 °C and maintain the mixture at this temperature for 1 hour. Finally heat the mixture... 

Reaction of the Grignard reagent with ethylene oxide, prepared in part (b), completes the synthesis. 

Figure 2. 1H-NMR spectrum of a living oligomeric ethylene oxide prepared with TPPAICI. (Reproduced from Ref. 6. Copyright 1981 American Chemical Society.)...

Determine the effluent concentrations of the three alka-nolamine products as functions of the reactor space time for the range 0 to 15 min when the blended inlet feed stream is 1M in ammonia and 2.4 M in ethylene oxide. Prepare plots of the product distributions for the synthesis of these alkanolamines in both a PER and an individual CSTR. 

Block copolymers consisting of segments with widely separated solubility characteristics have generated considerable interest because of their unusual surfactant properties. In fact, one of the earliest commercial block copolymers were the Wyandotte "Pluronics." These were poly(propylene oxide-b-ethylene oxide) prepared by sequential addition of ethylene oxide to sodium alkoxide initiated propylene oxide (37,38). Szwarc (39) and others (40,41) prepared poly(styrene-b-ethylene oxide) by addition of ethylene oxide to polystyrene anions in tetrahydrofuran. Other syntheses of AB or ABA block copolymers of styrene-ethylene oxide include sequential addition in various solvents, and coupling reactions (42,43). 

The hydroformylation and hydrogenation of ethylene oxide (prepared by oxidation of ethylene) did not become available until the early-1990s. Shell commercialized this technology in 1995. Total cost of production in 27,000 t/yr plant using ethylene oxide at a cost of 1010 US/t is estimated to be approximately 2.00/kg (P). 

Simplest examples are prepared by the cyclic oligomerization of ethylene oxide. They act as complexing agents which solubilize alkali metal ions in non-polar solvents, complex alkaline earth cations, transition metal cations and ammonium cations, e.g. 12—crown —4 is specific for the lithium cation. Used in phase-transfer chemistry. ... 

Prepared by epoxidation of styrene with per-oxyelhanoic acid. Reactions are similar to those of aliphatic epoxides (s e, e.g. ethylene oxide). Reacts with alcohols to give mono-ethers, e g. PhCH(0Me)CH20H. Phenols give resins. 

The monoalkyl ethers with R = CHj, CjHj and C4H, , known respectively as methyl ceUoaolve, ceUosolve and hutyl cellosolve, are of great commercial value, particularly as solvents, since they combine the properties of alcohols and ethers and are miscible with water. Equally important compounds are the carbitols (monoalkyl ethers of diethyleneglycol) prepared by the action of ethylene oxide upon the monoethers of ethylene glycol ... 

A solution of a-lithiomethoxyallene was prepared from nethoxyal lene and 0.20 mol of ethyllithiurn (note 1) in about 200 ml of diethyl ether (see Chapter II, Exp. 15). The solution was cooled to -50°C and 0.20 mol of ethylene oxide was added immediately. The cooling bath was removed temporarily and the temperature was allowed to rise to -15 c and was kept at this level for 2.5 h. The mixture was then poured into 200 ml of saturated ammonium chloride solution, to which a few millilitres of aqueous ammonia had been added (note 2). After shaking the layers were separated. The aqueous layer was extracted six times with small portions of diethyl ether. The combined ethereal solutions were dried over sodium sulfate and subsequently concentrated in a water-pump vacuum. Distillation of the... 

Note I. A solution of 1-1ithiomethoxyal1ene, prepared from methoxyallene and BuLi-hexane-THF, did not react with ethylene oxide below 20°C. The reaction started at about 30°C, but the reaction mixture became very dark. 

ETHYLENE We discussed ethylene production in an earlier boxed essay (Section 5 1) where it was pointed out that the output of the U S petrochemi cal industry exceeds 5 x 10 ° Ib/year Approximately 90% of this material is used for the preparation of four compounds (polyethylene ethylene oxide vinyl chloride and styrene) with polymerization to poly ethylene accounting for half the total Both vinyl chloride and styrene are polymerized to give poly(vinyl chloride) and polystyrene respectively (see Table 6 5) Ethylene oxide is a starting material for the preparation of ethylene glycol for use as an an tifreeze in automobile radiators and in the produc tion of polyester fibers (see the boxed essay Condensation Polymers Polyamides and Polyesters in Chapter 20)... 

Grignard reagents react with ethylene oxide to yield primary alcohols containing two more carbon atoms than the alkyl halide from which the organometallic compound was prepared... 

Not so for synthesis in the chemical industry where a compound must be prepared not only on a large scale but at low cost There is a pronounced bias toward reactants and reagents that are both abundant and inexpensive The oxidizing agent of choice for example in the chemical industry is O2 and extensive research has been devoted to develop mg catalysts for preparing various compounds by air oxidation of readily available starting materials To illustrate air and ethylene are the reactants for the industrial preparation of both acetaldehyde and ethylene oxide Which of the two products is ob tamed depends on the catalyst employed... 

Hydroxyethyi and 2-hydroxypropyl acrylates are prepared by the addition of ethylene oxide or propylene oxide to acryhc acid (104,105). 

Alkoxide-Type Initiators. Using the guide that an appropriate initiator should have approximately the same stmcture and reactivity as the propagating anionic species (see Table 1), alkoxide, thioalkoxide, carboxylate, and sUanolate salts would be expected to be usehil initiators for the anionic polymeri2ation of epoxides, thikanes, lactones, and sUoxanes, respectively (106—108). Thus low molecular weight poly(ethylene oxide) can be prepared... 

Poly(alI lene glycol)s. While these can be made from polymeri2ation of any alkylene oxide, they are usually prepared either from propylene oxide as the water-insoluble type, or as water-soluble copolymers of propylene oxide and up to 50% ethylene oxide (35,36) (see Polyethers, propylene OXIDE polymers). Current worldwide production is estimated to be about 45,000 t. 

Hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC), a nonionic thickening agent, is prepared from alkali cellulose and ethylene oxide in the presence of isopropyl alcohol (46). HEC is used in drilling muds, but more commonly in completion fluids where its acid-degradable nature is advantageous. Magnesium oxide stabilizes the viscosity-building action of HEC in salt brines up to 135°C (47). HEC concentrations are ca 0.6—6 kg/m (0.2—21b/bbl). 

Heterogeneous Catalytic Polymerization. The preparation of polymers of ethylene oxide with molecular weights greater than 100,000 was first reported in 1933. The polymer was produced by placing ethylene oxide in contact with an alkaline-earth oxide for extended periods (61). In the 1950s, the low yield and low polymerization rates of the eady work were improved upon by the use of alkaline-earth carbonates as the catalysts (62). 

Aqueous Solution Viscosity. A special solution preparation method is used for one type of measurement of aqueous solution viscosity (96). The appropriate amount of poly(ethylene oxide) resin is dispersed in 125 mL of anhydrous isopropyl alcohol by vigorous stirring. Because the resin is insoluble in anhydrous isopropyl alcohol, a slurry forms and the alcohol wets the resin particles. An appropriate amount of water is added and stirring is slowed to about 100 rpm to avoid shear degradation of the polymer. In Table 4, the nominal resin concentration reported is based on the amount of water present and ignores the isopropyl alcohol. 

Analysis for Poly(Ethylene Oxide). Another special analytical method takes advantage of the fact that poly(ethylene oxide) forms a water-insoluble association compound with poly(acryhc acid). This reaction can be used in the analysis of the concentration of poly(ethylene oxide) in a dilute aqueous solution. Ereshly prepared poly(acryhc acid) is added to a solution of unknown poly(ethylene oxide) concentration. A precipitate forms, and its concentration can be measured turbidimetricaHy. Using appropriate caUbration standards, the precipitate concentration can then be converted to concentration of poly(ethylene oxide). The optimum resin concentration in the unknown sample is 0.2—0.4 ppm. Therefore, it is necessary to dilute more concentrated solutions to this range before analysis (97). Low concentrations of poly(ethylene oxide) in water may also be determined by viscometry (98) or by complexation with KI and then titration with Na2S202 (99). 

Glycol ethers can be prepared from isopropyl alcohol by reaction of olefin oxides, eg, ethylene oxide [75-21-8] (qv) or propylene oxide [75-56-9] (qv). Reactions such as that to produce 2-isoproxyethanol [109-59-1] (isopropyl CeUosolve) are generally cataly2ed by an alkaU hydroxide. 

Hydroxypyrroles. Pyrroles with nitrogen-substituted side chains containing hydroxyl groups are best prepared by the Paal-Knorr cyclization. Pyrroles with hydroxyl groups on carbon side chains can be made by reduction of the appropriate carbonyl compound with hydrides, by Grignard synthesis, or by iasertion of ethylene oxide or formaldehyde. For example, pyrrole plus formaldehyde gives 2-hydroxymethylpyrrole [27472-36-2] (24). The hydroxymethylpyrroles do not act as normal primary alcohols because of resonance stabilization of carbonium ions formed by loss of water. 

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