Purification of oxo alcohols by controlled water treatment

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE TREATMENT OF A WATERIMMISCIBLE, PRIMARY C7 TO C13 OXO ALCOHOL IN A MIXTURE PRODUCED IN A TWO-STAGE OPERATION CONSISTING OF A FIRST STAGE IN WHICH HYDROGEN CARBON MONOXIDE AND AN OLEFIN ARE CONTACTED IN THEPRESENCE OF AN OXONATION CATALYST FORMING A PRODUCT PREDOMINANTLY ALDEHYDE AND OF A SECOND STAGE IN WHICH SAID ALDEHYDE IS CATALYTICALLY REDUCED WITH HYDROGEN TO FORM THE CORRESPONDING ALCOHOL, SAID ALCOHOL MIXTURE CONTAINING COLORFORMING IMPURITIES INCLUDING CARBONYL, ACETAL AND ESTER IMPURITIES NORMALLY SEPARABLE FROM THE ALCOHOL ONLY WITH DIFFICULTY, WHICH COMPRISES THE STEPS OF CONTACTING THE ALCOHOL WITH WATER IN THE LIQUID PHASE FOR A MINIMUM OF THIRTY MINUTES BUT AT A TEMPERATURE ABOVE THE ATMOSPHERIC BOILING POINT OF WATER; DISTILLING OFF WATER AND IMPURITIES WHICH HAVE BEEN RENDERED LOWER BOILING BY THE WATER CONTACTING STEP LEAVING A RESIDUAL BOILING MIXTURE; DISTILLING THE RESIDUAL MIXTURE IN THE PRSENCE OF STREAM TO TAKE OVERHEAD A VAPOROUS ALCOHOL-WATER MIXTURE; CONDENSING THIS MIXTURE; AND SEPARATING THE ALCOHOL FREE OF IMPURITIES FROM THE WATER.