| abstract |
BETA-BRANCHED ADEHYDES ARE PRODUCED BY DIMERIZATION OF AT LEAST ONE PRIMARY ALCOHOL HAVING A CH2 GROUP IN BETA POSITION, BY FORMING A REACTION MIXTURE CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF AT LEAST ONE PRIMARY ALCOHOL HAVING A CH2 GROUP IN BETA POSITION TO THE HYDROXYL GROUP AND OF A DEHYDROGENATION CATALYST CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF AT LEAST ONE METAL OXIDE SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF OXIDES OF COPPER, ZINC, LEAD, CHROMIUM, MOLYBDENUM, TUNGSTEN AND MANGANESE, AND BASICALLY ACTIVATED WITH A SUBSTANCE SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF ZINC OXIDE, CADMIUM OXIDE AND THE OXIDES AND HYDROXIDES OF THE ALKALI AND ALKALINE EARTH METALS, THE CATALYST BEING PRESENT IN AN AMOUNT OF AT LEAST ABOUT 5 GRAMS PER MOL OF THE ALCOHOL AND SUFFICIENT TO CAUSE AT LELVATED TEMPERATURE CONVERSION OF SAID ALCOHOL INTO THE ALDEHYDE, AND HEATING THE REACTION MIXTURE AT A TEMPERATURE AND FOR A PERIOD OF TIME SUFFICIENT TO CAUSE CONVERSION OF THE ALCOHOL INTO THE ALDEHYDE, AND EVAPORATION OF AT LEAST ABOUT 80% OF THE AMOUNT OF WATER FORMED UPON COMPLETE CONVERSION OF THE AT LEAST ONE ALCOHOL INTO THE BETA-BRANCHED ALDEHYDE, THE LATTER HAVING A NUMBER OF CARBON ATOMS CORRESPONDING TO THE COMBINED NUMBER OF CARBON ATOMS OF THE TWO ALCOHOL MOLECULES WHICH ARE THUS SUBJECT TO DIMERIZATION. |