Showa Denko K.K. (SDK) Develops New Catalyst for Tetralone Synthesis
Showa Denko K.K. (SDK) has developed a new catalyst for synthesizing alpha-tetralone, an important intermediate in the production of pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. The catalyst is the fruit of SDK's participation in the national project for developing new solid acid catalyst processes, which forms part of "Development of Next-Generation Chemical Process Technology" program implemented by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) and the Japan Chemical Innovation Institute (JCII).
Having both a benzene ring and six membered cyclic ketone in its molecular structure, alpha-tetralone is used for the synthesis of carbaryl (insecticide) and sertraline (antidepressant). The world market for sertraline is approx. 300 billion yen per year. Thus, the market for alpha-tetralone as a pharmaceutical/agrochemical intermediate is expected to exceed 5 billion yen a year.
Currently, alpha-tetralone is being produced using metallic reagents, such as aluminum chloride, and through multi-stage reaction processes. Since this production method results in a large volume of wastes, it has been pointed out that a more environment-friendly production method is necessary.
SDK has developed the innovative solid acid catalyst for alpha-tetralone synthesis by fully utilizing its expertise in catalyst development for acetic acid, ethyl acetate and other chemicals. The new catalyst technology offers the following advantages:
1) Compared with the conventional method that uses aluminum chloride or other metallic reagents, the new solid acid catalyst technology enables a substantial reduction in the volume of wastes.
2) alpha-tetralone can be produced by one step from p-xylene, or other benzene derivatives, and cyclic lactone. This substantially reduces production cost compared with the conventional multi-stage synthesis.
3) The new technology enables the synthesis of alpha-benzosuberone with a benzene ring and seven membered cyclic ketone, which is under development as a new pharmaceutical/agrochemical intermediate.
Most read news
Topics
Organizations
Other news from the department research and development

Get the chemical industry in your inbox
By submitting this form you agree that LUMITOS AG will send you the newsletter(s) selected above by email. Your data will not be passed on to third parties. Your data will be stored and processed in accordance with our data protection regulations. LUMITOS may contact you by email for the purpose of advertising or market and opinion surveys. You can revoke your consent at any time without giving reasons to LUMITOS AG, Ernst-Augustin-Str. 2, 12489 Berlin, Germany or by e-mail at revoke@lumitos.com with effect for the future. In addition, each email contains a link to unsubscribe from the corresponding newsletter.
Most read news
More news from our other portals
See the theme worlds for related content
Topic world Synthesis
Chemical synthesis is at the heart of modern chemistry and enables the targeted production of molecules with specific properties. By combining starting materials in defined reaction conditions, chemists can create a wide range of compounds, from simple molecules to complex active ingredients.

Topic world Synthesis
Chemical synthesis is at the heart of modern chemistry and enables the targeted production of molecules with specific properties. By combining starting materials in defined reaction conditions, chemists can create a wide range of compounds, from simple molecules to complex active ingredients.