Process for preparation of alkyleneamines

A process for preparing an elkyleneamine having an increased number of alkylene units from a starting material selected from the group consisting of ammonia and aklyleneamines and wherein the alkyleneamine starting material is selected from the group consisting of:

• compounds represented by the following formula (I):
• ##STR11## wherein X.sub.1 is a number from 2 to 6, Y.sub.1 is a number from 1to 6, R.sub.1 represents a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms, and R', represents a group represented by the following formula (1):
• ##STR12## wherein X'.sub.1, is a number from 1 to 6, X".sub.1 is 0 or 1 and Y'.sub.1 is a number from 0 to 4, and compounds represented by the following formula (II):
• ##STR13## wherein X.sub.2 and X'.sub.2 are numbers from 2 to 6, and R.sub.2 and R'.sub.2 represent a group represented by the following formula (2):
• ##STR14## wherein X".sub.2 is a number from 2 to 6 and Y.sub.2 is a number from 0 to 5;
• and further wherein the starting material is reacted with an alkanolamine in the presence of a niobium-containing substance selected from the group consisting of niobium oxides, niobic acid salts, fluroniobic acid salts, niobium fluorides, niobium chlorides, niobium bromides, niobium iodides, niobium oxyhalides, niobium alkoxides, and niobium salts of organic acids.