EFFECTS OF DOSES OF ETHANOL, ACETALDEHYDE , ETHYL-ACETATE, ACETIC-ACID, OR ACETONE ON THE STEADY-STATE CATALYTIC TRANSFORMATION OF ETHANOL INTO ACETONE IN THE PRESENCE OF WATER-VAPOR

The conversion of ethanol to acetone in the presence of water vapor on a CaO-ZnO (molar ratio Zn : Ca = 9: 1) mixed oxide catalyst was studi ed by perturbation of steady state by small doses of ethanol, acetalde hyde, ethyl acetate, acetic acid, or acetone. Directions of transient pressure responses of the reactants and the products have led to deriv e the following conclusions: (a) ethanol and acetaldehyde, and also ac etic acid and acetone, are relatively rapidly converted to each other; (b) acetic acid, a preceding compound of acetone, is rather slowly fo rmed directly from acetaldehyde and water without interposition of eth yl acetate; (c) ethyl acetate is not an intermediate product of the re action but formed by the esterification of acetic acid with ethanol.