Ohara, T; Sato, T; Shimizu, N; Prescher, G; Schwind, H; Weiberg, O
Acrolein [107-02-8], propenal. acrylaldehyde, CH2 = CH - CHO, the simplest unsaturated aldehyde, is a colorless, volatile, toxic, and lacrimatory liquid with a powerful odor. The commercial production of acrolein by heterogeneously catalyzed gas-phase condensation of acetaidehyde and formaldehyde was established by Degussa in 1942. Today, acrolein is produced on a large commercial scale by heterogeneously catalyzed gas-phase oxidation of propene.
Acrolein is an important intermediate for numerous substances (see Chap. 5). The main use of commercial, isolated acrolein is currently the production of D,L-methionine, an essential amino acid used as an animal feed supplement. In the production of acrylic acid, acrolein is not isolated from the gas-phase reaction mixture but is oxidized further on a heterogeneous catalyst. Several review articles [1J, [2] (see also [56]) and a monograph [3] describe the preparation, reactions, and uses of acrolein.
Methacrolein [78-85-3], 2-methylpropenal, o:-methylacrolein, CH2 =C(CH3)-CHO, also is a colorless, volatile, toxic. and lacrimatory liquid with a piercing odor. It is an intermediate in one of the processes for the production of methyl methacrylate (see p. 154).
Elvers, B; Hawklins, S; Schulz, G