Process for the preparation of alkylene glycols
AssigneeSaudi Basic Industries Corporation
InventorsJohn Ledford, Jaap Van Hal, Xiankuan Zhang
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Abstract
Disclosed is a process for the preparation of alkylene glycols from the corresponding alkylene oxide, such as ethylene glycol from ethylene oxide, in the presence of water, a catalyst and, optionally, carbon dioxide. The catalyst contains amines which are weak bases, specifically having pKa of at least 5.5, preferably 8 to 11. The amines may be primary, secondary, tertiary or a blend thereof or may be a compound having a structural combination of primary, secondary and/or tertiary amines.
Claims19
A process for the preparation of alkylene glycols comprising reacting an alkylene oxide with water in the presence of a catalyst containing
- a) primary or secondary amines of the formula:
- wherein R1, R2 and R3 are hydrogen, alkyl, aryl or cycloalkyl radicals and are the same or different or
- b) moieties of two or more primary, secondary or tertiary amines of the formulae:
- wherein R4, R5 and R6 are hydrogen, alkyl, aryl or cycloalkyl radicals and are the same or different and R4 and R5 may form a fused ring;
- said catalyst having a pKa of at least 5.5
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.