GB943683A - Improvements in or relating to the cyclic process for the production of hydrogen peroxide - Google Patents

Abstract

Hydrogen peroxide is produced in a cyclic process by the successive, alternate, hydrogenation, oxidation and extraction, for example by means of water, of a mixture of 2-tertiary amyl-and 2 - iso - secondary amyl - anthraquinone in solution in a solvent mixture of an aromatic hydrocarbon and an aliphatic or alicyclic alcohol, the 2-tertiary amyl anthraquinone being present in amount at least 30%. The amyl anthraquinones are preferably used in proportions 65-75 wt. per cent 2-tertiary amyl anthraquinone and 35-25 wt. per cent respectively 2-iso-secondary amyl anthraquinone, and usually 70 wt. per cent to 30 wt. per cent respectively. The solvent mixture preferably contains equal volumes of hydrocarbon and alcohol. The hydrocarbon may be benzene or an alkyl benzene e.g. xylene or 2-methyl naphthalene, and the aliphatic or alicyclic alcohol, isoheptyl alcohol, 2-ethyl hexanol, diiso butyl carbinol or methyl cyclo hexanol, and the mixture is preferably 50 : 50 xylene and diisobutyl carbinol. The mixture of amyl anthraquinones may be obtained by the process described in Specification 883,226 by dehydrating fusel amyl alcohol by use of activated alumina, introducing the resulting mixed amylene into benzene containing aluminium chloride, fractionally distilling the amyl benzene mixture produced, condensing with phthalic-anhydride in the presence of anhydrous aluminium chloride to give 2-(41-amylbenzoyl-) benzoic acid, and dehydrating cyclizing with sulphuric acid to amylanthraquinone. Specifications 671,524, 686,567 and 875,189 also are referred to.