Production of oxygenated hydrocarbons

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF OXYGENATED HYDROCARBONS BY THE VAPOR PHASE PARTIAL OXIDATION OF NORMALLY GASEOUS SATURATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBON MATERIALS AT A PRESSURE OF BETWEEN ABOUT 20 AND 300 POUNDS PER SQUARE INCH WHEREIN A MAIN STREAM COMPRISING A REACTION MIXTURE CONTAINING BETWEEN ABOUT 2 AND MATERIALS, SAID MIXTURE CONTAINING BETWEEN ABOUT 2 AND 25 MOLE PERCENT OXYGEN ON THE HYDROCARBONS, IS HEATED TO AN ELEVATED TEMPERATURE OF ABOUT 500* TO 700* F. AND BELOW THAT AT WHICH THE OXIDATION REACTION WILL TAKE PLACE IN AN UNCONTROLLED MANNER AND THE OXIDATION REACTION PROCEEDS AT A RAPID RATE AFTER AN INDUCTION PERIOD OF ABOUT 0.5 TO 5 SECONDS, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES INTRODUCING INTO THE MAIN STREAM AN AUXILLIARY STREAM COMPRISING AN ALKYL PEROXIDE WHICH WILL DECOMPOSE TO LIBERATE FREE RADICALS AT THE TEMPERATURE REACHED BY THE REACTION MIXTURE DURING THE INDUCTION PERIOD IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO YIELD A CONCENTRATION OF AT LEAST ABOUT 0.05 VOLUME PERCENT ON THE VOLUME OF THE MAIN STREAM, SAID SUBSTANCE BEING ESSENTIALLY THE SOLE ADDED REACTION PROMOTER IN SAID REACTION MIXTURE.