One of the largest industrial applications of homogeneous catalysis, hydroformylation is the process whereby alkenes react with carbon monoxide and hydrogen at high temperatures in the presence of a transition metal catalyst to yield aldehydes. The resulting products are valuable intermediates in the synthesis of alcohols, esters, amines, and olefins, used in pharmaceutical chemistry and the manufacture of fragrances. This reaction was discovered around 70 years ago, and nowadays some ten million metric tons of aldehydes are produced each year.
This up-to-date reference is unique in its comprehensive coverage from fundamentals to applications, summarizing the latest advances and developments in hydroformylation reactions. The two authors are at the forefront of catalysis research, and unite their expertise in synthetic and applied catalysis, as well as theoretical and analytical chemistry.
As such, they provide a detailed account of the catalytic systems employed, catalyst stability and recovery, mechanistic investigations, substrate scope, and technical implementation. Chapters on multiphase hydroformylation procedures, tandem hydroformylations and other industrially applied reactions using syngas and carbon monoxide are also included.
A must-have reference not only for synthetic chemists working in academic and industrial research, but also for theoreticians and analytical chemists.