| abstract |
Disclosed herein are a process for producing an ethernamine(3), which comprises reacting a primary or secondarynalcohol(1),ROH, with acrylonitrile in an amount of 0.8 ton1.2 equivalents of the alcohol(1) in the presence of annalkali metal hydroxide in an amount of not less than 0.01npart by weight, but less than 0.05 part by weight per 100nparts by weight of the alcohol(1) to obtain annalkyloxypropionitrile(2),and then adding water to thenreaction system without removing the alkali metalnhydroxide therefrom and effecting hydrogenation using anhydrogenation catalyst:n ROH(1)+ CH2=CHCN, ROCH 2 CH 2 CH 2 CN(2), ROCH 2 CH 2 CH 2 NH 2 (3) nwherein R denotes a linear or branched alkyl or alkenylngroup having 6 to 24 carbon atoms. n Also disclosed are a process for producing an etherntertiary amine (5), R-O-CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -N(CH 2 R 1 ) 2 , whichncomprises adding an aldehyde to the resulting ethernamine(3) in the presence of a metal catalyst or a Raneynnickel catalyst, and a process for producing an ethernquaternary ammonium salt (6), R-O-CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -N(CH 2 R 1 ) 2 (R 2 ),nwhich comprises reacting a quaternizing agent with thenether tertiary amine(5). |