4-Hydroxyphenyl-acetonitrile prodn. - by gas-phase reaction of 4-methoxy-phenyl-acetonitrile with water, on zeolite or structurally related aluminium-contg. phosphate catalyst

摘要

4-Hydroxyphenylacetonitrile (I) is produced by the gas-phase reaction of 4-methoxyphenylacetonitrile (II) at 280-4500 deg.C and 0.01-50 bar on zeolites or structurally-related Al-contg. phosphates (III) in the presence of water vapour. Pref. (III) is a pentasil, alumino, gallium- or borosilicate zeolite, a pentasil zeolite contg. at least 2 of the above elements as tetrahedral cations in the pentasil lattice, a zeolite of the faujasite or mordenite type, or a crystalline Al-contg. phosphate with a mol. sieve structure, obtd. by a hydrothermal process. USE/ADVANTAGE - Useful for the prodn. of 2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-ethylamine, 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid and 4-hydroxyphenylacetamide (claimed). Provides an improved process for heterogeneous catalytic hydrolysis of a phenol ether, without the disadvantages of prior-art homogeneous processes (e.g., laborious sepn. of catalyst, reduced yield due to further reaction of the prod. with the catalyst).