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AssigneeOxfa GmbH
InventorsHermann Wolf JBACH, Florian KOHLER, Matthias SCHMIDT, Gunthard SCHOLZ
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The invention relates to a method for catalytically producing formic acid and regenerating the catalyst used in the process. A vanadyl ion, vandate ion, or polyoxometallate ion, which is used as the catalyst, of the general formula [PMoxVyO40]n− is brought into contact with an alpha hydroxyl aldehyde, an alpha hydroxy carboxylic acid, a carbohydrate, a glycoside, or a polymer, which contains a carbon chain and which comprises at least one OH group that is bound to the carbon chain as a substituent in a repeating manner and/or an O, N, or S atom contained in the carbon chain in a repeating manner, in a liquid solution (12) in a vessel (10) at a temperature above 70° C. and below 160° C., wherein 6≤x≤11, 1≤y≤6, 3<n<10, and x+y=12, where n, x, and y is each a whole number. The catalyst reduced in the process is returned to its starting state by oxidation. For this purpose, the solution (12) is brought into contact with a gas (18) which contains a volume percent of oxygen of at least 18% at a pressure of at least 2 bar and maximally 16 bar by means of a mixing device or via a liquid-non-permeable gas-permeable membrane. CO and/or CO2 resulting during the reaction and merging with the gas (18) is discharged in such a quantity that the volume percent of CO and CO2 combined does not exceed 80% in the gas (18).
A method for catalytically producing formic acid and regenerating the catalyst employed, where a vanadyl ion, vanadate ion or polyoxometalate ion of the general formula [PMoxVyO40]n− serving as catalyst is contacted at a temperature above 70° C. and below 160° C. with an alpha-hydroxyaldehyde, an alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acid, a carbohydrate, a glycoside or a polymer containing a carbon chain and having at least one OH group bonded repeatedly as substituent to the carbon chain and/or having an O, N or S atom present repeatedly in the carbon chain, in a liquid solution (12) in a vessel (10), where 6≤x≤11 and 1≤y≤6 and 3<n<10 and x+y=12, where n, x and y are each an integer, where the catalyst reduced is returned by oxidation to its original state, characterized in that the solution (12) for this purpose is contacted with a gas (18) comprising a volume fraction of at least 18% of oxygen at a pressure of at least 2 bar and at most 16 bar, by means of a mixing apparatus or via a liquid-impermeable, gas-permeable membrane, where CO and/or CO2 formed in the reaction and passing into the gas (18) are/is taken off in a quantity such that the volume fraction of CO and CO2 together in the gas (18) does not exceed 80%.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.