Production of alkylated aryl sulfonate detergents

Claim 1

A PROCESS OF PRODUCING A SULFONIC ACID SALT OF AN ALKYL BENZENE HAVING AN ALKYL GROUP OF 12 TO 24 CARBON ATOMS AND NOT MORE THAN ONE OTHER ALKYL GROUP, SAID OTHER ALKYL GROUP CONTAINING NOT MORE THAN FOUR CARBON ATOMS, WHICH COMPRISES REACTING SAID ALKYL BENZENE IN THE ABSENCE OF ADDED SOLVENT WITH OLEUM OF 15% TO 30% INITIAL CONCENTRATION IN PROPORTIONS SUCH THAT THE MOLE RATIO OF FREE SULFUR TRIOXIDE TO ALKYL BENZENE IS 0.7:1 TO 1.4:1, MAINTAINING THE REACTION MIXTURE AT A TEMPERATURE OF 5* C. TO 50* C. AND A SUPERATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE OF 5 TO 50 P. S. I. G., REMOVING FROM THE REACTION ZONE REACTED MIXTURE AFTER A CONTACT TIME OF 1 MIN. TO 5 HRS., AND FEEDING THE WITHDRAWN REACTION MIXTURE INTO AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION OF A BASE OF 20% TO 30% CONCENTRATION WHILE MAINTAINING IN THE NEUTRALIZER A TEMPERATURE OF 50* C. TO 90* C. AND A PH OF ABOUT 7 TO 10.