Patent ID: 8029690

Claim:
A process for preparing a highly pure quaternary ammonium salt comprising: (1) adding a quaternary ammonium hydroxide salt or quaternary ammonium carbonate to a quaternary ammonium salt containing a protonic acid salt of a tertiary amine as an impurity, wherein the anion of quaternary ammonium salt is selected from the group consisting of CF 3 CO 2 − , CF 3 SO 3 − , BF 4 − , AlF 4 − , ClBF 3 − , (FSO 2 ) 2 N − , PF 6 − , AsF 6 − , ClO 4 − , N(CF 3 SO 3 ) 2 − , C(CF 3 SO 3 ) 3 − , RfSO 3 − , RfCO 2 − , wherein Rf is fluoroalkyl having 1 to 8 carbon atoms; (R r1 SO 2 )(R r2 SO 2 )N − and (R r1 SO 2 )(R r2 CO 2 ) − , wherein R r1 and R r2 are the same or different and are each fluoroalkyl having 1 to 8 carbon atoms: and wherein the protonic acid is selected from the group consisting of CF 3 CO 2 H, CF 3 SO 3 H, HBF 4 , HAlF 4 , HClBF 3 , (FSO 2 ) 2 NH, HPF 6 , HAsF 6 , HClO 4 , NH(CF 3 SO 2 , HC(CF 3 SO 3 , RfSO 3 H, RfCO 2 H, wherein Rf is fluoroalkyl having 1 to 8 carbon atoms; (R r1 SO 2 )(R r2 SO 2 )NH and (R r1 SO 2 )(R r2 CO 2 )H, wherein R r1 and R r2 are the same or different and are each fluoroalkyl having 1 to 8 carbon atoms, and thereby neutralizing the tertiary amine protonic acid salt with the quaternary ammonium hydroxide salt or carbonate to convert the acid salt to a tertiary amine and water and to convert the quaternary ammonium hydroxide salt or carbonate to a quaternary ammonium salt at the same time, and (2) removing the tertiary amine and water produced from the system.