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US 11,472,759 B2Granted
Etherification process
AssigneeBp P.L.C.
InventorsJon Deeley, Gareth Armitage
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention relates to a process for preparing ethers, particularly unsymmetrical ethers, and preferably ethers suitable for use as base stocks for lubricant compositions. In particular, the process involves the reaction of an α,β-unsaturated aldehyde with a trihydrocarbyl orthoester to form an α,β-unsaturated acetal and conversion of the α,β-unsaturated acetal to an ether through hydrogenation and hydrogenolysis.
Claims20
A process for preparing an ether, said process comprising the steps of:
- i) contacting an α,β-unsaturated aldehyde of formula (I):
- where R1 and R3 are independently selected from H and aliphatic hydrocarbyl;
- and R2 is aliphatic hydrocarbyl,
- with a trihydrocarbyl orthoester to form an α,β-unsaturated acetal;
- and
- ii) subjecting the α,β-unsaturated acetal obtained from step i) to hydrogenation and hydrogenolysis to hydrogenate at the α- and β-positions of the α,β-unsaturated acetal and to convert the acetal group to an ether.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.