Ethylene oxide production

Abstract

An improved method is disclosed for the vapor phase epoxidation of ethylene to ethylene oxide which includes intimately contacting an ethylene-containing feed stream with an epoxidizing amount of molecular oxygen epoxidizing agent in the presence of a catalytically effective amount of a novel supported, activated silver catalyst and, preferably in the presence of an effective amount of at least one inhibitor which retards combustion of ethylene to carbon dioxide at a temperature of from about 200.degree. C. to about 300.degree. C. The novel silver catalyst is best described in terms of its method of preparation. The catalyst is prepared by impregnating certain inorganic porous substrates with a specific silver carboxylate/amine complex impregnating solution. The impregnated support is then heated in order to evaporate volatiles, decompose the complex and activate the catalyst.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.