Patent ID: 6570043
Filing Date: 2003-05-27
Classification: B01J,C07C

Abstract:
A process of converting sugar to sugar alcohol by catalytic hydrogenation in the aqueous phase, comprising:passing an aqueous sugar solution into a reaction chamber at a rate of at least 0.5 kg sugar per liter of catalyst bed per hour; maintaining temperature of solution in the reaction chamber at less than 120Â° C.; maintaining pressure in the reaction chamber of 100 to 3000 pounds per square inch gauge hydrogen gas overpressure; reacting the sugar with hydrogen over a hydrothermally stable catalyst comprising ruthenium on a titania support, the catalyst being essentially without nickel and essentially without rhenium, the titania being at least 75% rutile phase titania; wherein, when measured after 300 hours at the same reaction conditions, at least 97% of the sugar is converted to a sugar alcohol.