Conversion of ortho tertiary alkyl phenols to para tertiary alkyl phenols

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR CONVERTING AN ORTHO TERTIARY ALKYL PHENOL INTO THE CORRESPONDING PARA TERTIARY ALKYL PHENOL ISOMER, WHICH COMPRISES REACTING IN A FIRST REACTION STEP THE ORTHO TERTIARY ALKYL PHENOL AS THE SOLE PHENOLIC REACTANT PRESENT WITH A COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF OLEFINS, ALKYL HALIDES, AND ALCOHOLS CAPABLE OF YIELDING A TERTIARY ALKYL RADICAL WHICH IS THE SAME AS THE TERTIARY ALKYL RADICAL OF THE SAID ORTHO COMPOUND IN THE PRESENCE OF A CATALYST FOR NUCLEAR ALKYLATION OF PHENOLS TO FORM A 2,4-DITERTIARY ALKYL PHENOL, SUBJECTING SAID DIALKYL PHENOL IN A SECOND REACTION STEP TO DEALKYLATION IN THE ABSENCE OF ADDED PHENOL AND IN THE PRESENCE OF A PHENOL DEALKYLATION CATALYST TO FORM PARA TERTIARY ALKYL PHENOL AND ORTHO TERTIARY ALKYL PHENOL, RECYCLING THE LATTER TO SAID FIRST REACTION STEP, AND RECOVERING SAID PARA TERTIARY ALKYL PHENOL FROM EFFLUENTS OF SAID SECOND REACTION STEP AS THE NET PRODUCT OF THE PROCESS.