1 manufacture Carbon, alcohol from

The initial manufacture of chemicals from petroleum raw materials was the manufacture of alcohols from olefinic refinery gases by the Standard Oil Co. (N.J.) in 1919 (60), Other pioneering efforts in the field involved synthesis of chemicals from hydrocarbon gases by Carbide and Carbon and the manufacture of oxygenated chemicals from natural gas by Cities Service Oil Co., dating from 1926 (61),... 

Early in the twentieth century, the first attempts to manufacture formamide directiy from ammonia and carbon monoxide under high temperature and pressure encountered difficult technical problems and low yields (23). Only the introduction of alkaU alkoxides in alcohoHc solution, ie, the presence of alcoholate as a catalyst, led to the development of satisfactory large-scale formamide processes (24). 

Alcohols used in the manufacture of alcohol and alcohol ether sulfates are obtained either by chemical treatment of fats and oils or by petrochemical processes from natural gas or crude oil. In either case the hydrocarbon chain ranging from 8 to 18 carbon atoms corresponding to the composition of coconut oil is the most desirable. 

Polymers. The manufacture of alcohols fiom higher olefins via the oxo process for use m plasticizers is a significant outlet for both linear a-olefins and branched olefins such as heptenes, nonenes, and dodecenes. These olefins are converted into alcohols containing one more carbon number than the original olefin. The alcohols then react with dibasic anhydrides or adds to form PVC plasticizers. The plasticizers produced from the linear olefins have superior volatility and cold-weallier flexibility characteristics, making them an ideal product to use in flexible PVC for automobile interiors. 

Such reactions comprise practically all those in which hydrogen is linked to carbon to produce of necessity hydroxy compounds, which are of industrial importance, e.g., the manufacture of methanol and higher alcohols from carbon monoxide and hydrogen in presence of catalysts, such as zinc-chromium oxides. 

Several methods of carbon dioxide production are in commercial use. These include the reaction between sulphuric acid and sodium bicarbonate, the combustion of fuel oil, the extraction of carbon dioxide from the flue gas of a boiler or similar heating facility, the distillation of alcohol and the fermentation of beer carbon dioxide is also a byproduct of fertiliser manufacture. Following manufacture the gas must be cleaned to ensure it is free from impurities and is fit for purpose. Two typical processes are described below. 

Guanidine is a strong base, which is found in a variety of natural products. These products include turnip juice, mushrooms, com germ, rice hulls, mussels, and earthworms from which it can be extracted with alcohol. Guanidine forms deliquescent crystals with a melting point of 50 Celsius. It absorbs carbon dioxide from the air, and is very soluble in water and alcohol. It is manufactured on an industrial scale from sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, and ammonia gases. Guanidine is a readily available commercial chemical. 

Carbonv—The direct production of alcohol from carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen is attractive, as these primary materials are available in unlimited quantities. A successful process of manufacture from the elements would of necessity oust all the other processes, as the latter must depend on various natural uncontrolled forces. The processes attempted are as follows —... 

Gasohol boosts octane rating and reduces emissions of carbon monoxide. From a resource viewpoint, because of its photosynthetic origin, alcohol may be considered a renewable resource rather than a depletable fossil fuel. Ethanol is most commonly produced biochemically by fermentation of carbohydrates. Brazil, a country that produces copious amounts of fermentable sugar from sugarcane, has been a leader in the manufacture of ethanol for fuel uses, with an annual production rate of about 24 billion liters. However, due to sugarcane crop shortfalls in 2009-2010, Brazil actually had to import some ethanol from the United States in early 2011 to make up for a deficiency in this fuel. 

Most manufacturers sell a portion of their alcohol product on the merchant market, retaining a portion for internal use, typically for the manufacture of plasticizers. Sterling Chemicals linear alcohol of 7, 9, and 11 carbons is all used captively. Plasticizer range linear alcohols derived from natural fats and oils, for instance, octanol and decanol derived from coconut oil and 2-octanol derived from castor oil, are of only minor importance in the marketplace. 

The sales brochures of the manufacturers describe the plasticizer range alcohols available on the merchant market (18). Typical properties of several commercial plasticizer range alcohols are presented in Table 8. Because in most cases these ate mixtures of isomers or alcohols with several carbon chains, the properties of a particular material can vary somewhat from manufacturer to manufacturer. Both odd and even carbon chain alcohols are available, in both linear and highly branched versions. Examples of the composition of several mixtures are given in Table 9. 

A.luminum Jilkyl Chain Growth. Ethyl, Chevron, and Mitsubishi Chemical manufacture higher, linear alpha olefins from ethylene via chain growth on triethyl aluminum (15). The linear products are then used as oxo feedstock for both plasticizer and detergent range alcohols and because the feedstocks are linear, the linearity of the alcohol product, which has an entirely odd number of carbons, is a function of the oxo process employed. Alcohols are manufactured from this type of olefin by Sterling, Exxon, ICI, BASE, Oxochemie, and Mitsubishi Chemical. 

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