Patent ID: 11919840
Assignee: T.EN PROCESS TECHNOLOGY, INC
Field: Organic fine chemistry (Chemistry)
Classification: CPC C  B  Y | IPC B  C

Claim 9:
10. A method for operating a continuous, unmodulated, sequential, multi-catalytic reaction process wherein each catalyst is subject to changes in performance in the course of the process, which methods adjust manipulative inputs to provide outputs within predetermined ranges, the catalytic reaction process comprising:
(i) continuously or intermittently introducing at a feed rate and concentration at least one raw material, and optionally a tracer precursor, into a reaction zone containing liquid medium, wherein the at least one raw material includes a carbohydrate and the tracer precursor is a ketone of 3 to 10 carbons,
(ii) maintaining the reaction zone under catalytic conversion conditions suitable for a first catalytic conversion to produce a liquid medium containing an intermediate, said conditions including temperature, pressure, residence time, concentration of the first catalyst providing catalytically active species, and, optionally, pH and adjuvants,
(iii) contacting the liquid medium containing the intermediate with a second catalyst providing catalytically active species under conditions suitable for the other conversion to produce the chemical product, said conditions including temperature, pressure, residence time, concentration of the second catalyst, and, optionally, pH and adjuvants, wherein the chemical product is at least and the tracer precursor is a ketone of 3 to 10 carbons, and
(iv) continuously or intermittently withdrawing liquid medium containing chemical product from contact with the second catalyst at a rate to provide a continuous process;
wherein at least one byproduct is produced, and wherein the catalytic activity of at least one of the first catalyst and second catalyst is subject to performance change during the continuous operation,, the method comprises:
(a) continuously or intermittently comparing predetermined process parameters from the process operation to predetermined windows for such operation; and
(b) adjusting, as necessary to meet a desired process objective, manipulative inputs to the process,, wherein in element (a) the predetermined process parameters inputted comprise (I) the rate and concentration of feed of raw material in step (i) and the conversion efficiency of the raw material to the chemical product and (II) at least one of concentration of at least one by-product in the withdrawn liquid medium, concentration of intermediate in the withdrawn liquid medium and, if used, concentration of at least one tracer in the withdrawn liquid medium, and wherein in element (b) adjustment is made to at least one of: (I) the absolute amount of catalytically active species and relative amounts of each of the first catalyst and second catalyst, and (II) at least one of the rate of feed and concentration of the raw material to the reaction zone as the manipulative inputs.