Patent ID: 7598414

Claim:
A process for preparing a synthetic alkylaryl sulfonate comprising (a) reacting a first amount of at least one aromatic compound with an amount of a mixture of olefins selected from olefins having from about 8 to about 100 carbon atoms, in the presence of a strong acid catalyst; (b) reacting the product of (a) with an additional amount of at least one aromatic compound and an additional amount of strong acid catalyst and, optionally, with an additional amount of a mixture of olefins selected from olefins having from about 8 to about 100 carbon atoms, wherein the resulting product comprises at least about 80 weight percent of a 1,2,4tri-alkylsubstituted aromatic compound; (c) sulfonating the product of (b); and (d) neutralizing the product of (c) with a source of alkali or alkaline earth metal or ammonia.