Hydrochloric Acid → DL-alpha-Tocopherol

Participants

Reaction Steps

For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,217,285 (hereinafter '285 patent) discloses the synthesis of DL-α-tocopherol in toluene or n-hexane solvent with ZnCl2 and silica-alumina (or silica-gel) in the presence of acid, especially HCl, asserting that tocopherol can be obtained with a purity of 95 to 96% at a production yield of 99% or higher. Also, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,634,781 and 4,639,533, both assigned to BASF, disclose processes producing for DL-α-tocopherol in which isophytol is reacted with amines such as a tridecylamine and thereafter with TMHQ in the presence of ZnCl2 and HCl, which are somewhat complicated and inefficient. In those cases, the tocopherol is described to be produced with a purity of 94 to 95% at a yield of 95 to 98%.

Provenance & Evidence