Manufacture of alcohols

In a method for isolation and/or purification of an alcohol from a first mixture comprising an aldehyde in the amount of from 0.05 to 2 wt %, the improvement comprising contacting said first mixture with a acetal formation catalyst under conditions suitable for formation of the acetal of said aldehyde and said alcohol to produce a second mixture comprising said acetal and said alcohol, and distilling said second mixture to produce an overhead comprising said alcohol and a bottoms comprising at least one of an acetal and an unsaturated ether, wherein said acetal formation catalyst is in a form suitable for both catalyst function and distillation packing.