US 7,507,862 B2
Process for hydrogenating an aromatic amine in the presence of a supported ruthenium catalyst
Guido Stochniol, Gelnhausen (Germany); Bernd Jaeger, Darmstadt (Germany); Thomas Haas, Frankfurt (Germany); Norbert Finke, Oer-Erkenschwick (Germany); Werner Burkhardt, Brachttal (Germany); and Juergen Grunert, Freigericht (Germany)
Assigned to Degussa AG, Duesseldorf (Germany)
Filed on Nov. 23, 2005, as Appl. No. 11/284,932.
Application 11/284932 is a division of application No. 10/449772, filed on Jun. 02, 2003, granted, now 7,030,052.
Claims priority of application No. 02012040 (EP), filed on May 31, 2002.
Prior Publication US 2006/0079717 A1, Apr. 13, 2006
Int. Cl. C07C 209/00 (2006.01)
U.S. Cl. 564—450 12 Claims
 
1. A process for hydrogenating an aromatic amine having at least one amino group bound to an aromatic nucleus, comprising:
reacting the aromatic amine with hydrogen in the presence of at least one supported catalyst;
wherein the catalyst comprises as active metal, ruthenium alone or together with at least one metal selected from the group consisting of the first, seventh or eighth subgroups of the periodic system in an amount of 0.01 to 20 wt % of active metal, based on the supported catalyst, and a support selected from the group consisting of Al2O3, TiO2, ZrO2, SiO2, MgO, ZnO, spinels, aluminium silicates and active carbons and mixtures thereof, wherein the support has a BET surface area ranging from 32 m2/g to 67 m2/g, and wherein at least 55% of the pore volume of the catalyst support are macropores having a pore diameter of greater than 50 nm and less than 45% are mesopores having a pore diameter of 2 to 50 nm.