Technology for The Production of 2-Phenyl Ethyl Alcohol (2-PEA): A Synthetic Rose Aroma by the Hydrogenation of Styrene Oxide

A process for preparation of 2-phenyl ethanol by catalytic hydrogenation of styrene oxide using a catalyst consisting of Pd (II) on basic inorganic support.

CSIR-CSMCRI developed a novel hydrogenation catalyst where Pd was loaded on inorganic solid base (2% loading). The catalyst thus developed is simple to make with high physical strength, stable under ambient condition, non-pyrophoric and produces no by-products. The catalyst retained its performance over 100 recycle use in hydrogenation process.

• The catalytic hydrogenation of styrene oxide is feasible with direct use Pd(II) supported catalyst, without prior reduction of Pd(II) to Pd(0).
• Pd(II) supported catalyst is easy to synthesized which is non pyrophoric, can be stored in air for long (tested for over 1 year) without any noticeable loss in its catalytic performance.
• The as synthesized catalyst produce very less or no dust as in the case of conventionally used Pd on carbon.
• The as synthesized catalysts do not require a basic promoter to increase selectivity of 2-phenyl ethanol.
• The as synthesized catalysts can be directly reused after the first cycle of hydrogenation of styrene oxide by simple decantation of the product from liquid phase without involving any purification/filtration step.
• The present method yields 2-phenyl ethanol with 98.5% selectivity at total conversion of styrene oxide.
• The catalyst can be effectively recycled many cycles (tested for 25 cycles) without any significant loss in activity and selectivity.