Process for the production of sugar alcohols

US7968704B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V. · DE

Inventors

• Thomas Hirth · Bogen, DE
• Rainer Schweppe · Karlsruhe, DE
• Jürgen Graf · Remchingen, DE
• Rainer Busch · Aachen, DE
• Matthias Pursch · Rheinau, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 7, 2005
• Grant date: Jun 28, 2011
• Expiry date: Sep 19, 2027

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y02P20/52
• WIPO field: Organic fine chemistry
• WIPO sector: Chemistry

Abstract

Disclosed is a method for producing polyalcohols in the form of sugar alcohols from the group comprising sorbitol and mannitol and other optional C2 to C6 polyols. According to said method, a monosaccharide, disaccharide, oligosaccharide, or polysaccharide containing at least one glucose unit and/or at least one fructose unit is continuously reacted with hydrogen at an elevated temperature and at a great pressure in an aqueous phase in the presence of a hydrogenating catalyst based on ruthenium or ruthenium oxide so as to obtain the inventive polyalcohols. The minimum temperature is set at 100° C. while the minimum pressure is set at 150 bar and the maximum dwell time of the reactants during catalytic hydrogenation is set at 600 s. The inventive method is particularly suitable for producing the sugar alcohols sorbitol and/or mannitol or C2 to C6 polyols from glucose, fructose, or disaccharides, oligosaccharides, or polysaccharides containing glucose units or fructose units, especially saccharose, practically all the used saccharides being reacted without turning into caramel. Furthermore, the yield of said sugar alcohols or C2 to C6 polyols is exceptionally high while the selectivi…