Synthesis of oxygenated organic compounds

Claim 1

AN IMPROVED PROCESS FOR PREPARING OXYGENATED ORGANIC COMPOUNDS FROM OLEFINS WHICH COMPRISES PASSING AN OLEFIN, CARBON MONOXIDE AND HYDROGEN INTO A CARBONYLATION ZONE IN CONTACT WITH A COBALT CARBONYLATION CATALYST, FORMING ALDEHYDES CONTAINING ONE MORE CARBON ATOM THAN SAID OLEFINS IN SAID ZONE, FORMING MINOR AMOUNTS OF SECONDARY REACTION PRODUCTS INCLUDING WATER AND COBALT FORMATE IN SAID ZONE, PASSING A LIQUID PRODUCT COMPRISING ALDEHYDES, WATER, UNREACTED OLEFINS, SECONDARY REACTION PRODUCTS INCLUDING COBALT FORMATE AND DISSOLVED COBALT COMPOUNDS AND COMPLEXES FROM SAID CARBONYLATION ZONE, PASSING SAID PRODUCT THROUGH A WATER REMOVAL ZONE, WHEREBY SAID COBALT FORMATE IS RENDERED INSOLUBLE IN SAID ALDEHYDE PRODUCT, PASSING PRODUCT CONTAINING ONLY A MINOR AMOUNT OF WATER INTO A CATALYST DECOMPOSITION ZONE, SUBJECTING SAID PRODUCT IN SAID ZONE TO A HEAT TREATMENT IN THE PRESENCE OF AN INERT STRIPPING GAS TO DECOMPOSE SUBSTANTIALLY ALL DISSOLVED COBALT CARBONYL IN SAID LIQUID PRODUCT TO COBALT METAL, AND RECOVERING A PRODUCT SUBSTANTIALLY FREE OF DISSOLVED COBALT COMPOUNDS.