Production of hydrogen peroxide

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE PREPARATION OF HYDROGEN PEROXIDE WHICH COMPRISES PASSING A VAPOROUS MIXTURE COMPRISING MOLECULAR OXYGEN AND AN ALCOHOL OF AT LEAST ONE CARBON ATOMS PER MOLECULAR AND HAVING BOTH THE HYDROXYL GROUP AND A HYDROGEN ATOM ATTACHED TO ONE AND THE SAME CARBON ATOM IN THE VAPOR PHASE THROUGH A SUCCESSION OF REACTION ZONES WHILE MAINTAINING THE REACTION MIXTURE AT A TEMPERATURE WITHIN THE RANGE OF FROM ABOUT 350* C. TO ABOUT 500*C. UNDER A PRESSURE WITHIN THE RANGE OF FROM ABOUT 45 POUNDS PER SQUARE INCH (ABSOLUTE) TO ABOUT 1000 POUNDS PER SQUARE INCH (ABSOLUTE), BETWEEN EACH PAIR OF SAID SUCCESSIVE REACTION ZONES ADDING A STREAM OF GAS CONTAINING MOLECULAR OXYGEN TO THE VAPOROUS MIXTURE IN AN AMOUNT CORRESPONDING TO FORM ABOUT 0.25 TO ABOUT 0.01 MOLE OF ADDED MOLECULAR OXYGEN PER MOLE OF ALCOHOL AT THE POINT OF ADDITION AND IN AMOUNTS FURTHER CORRESPONDING TO A MOLE RATIO OF TOTAL ALCOHOL SUPPLIED TO TOTAL OXYGEN ADDED BETWEEN ABOUT 2:1 AND ABOUT 20:1, WITHDRAWING EFFLUENT FROM THE TERMINAL REACTION ZONE AT A RATE SUCH THAT NOT OVER 90% OF THE TOTAL OXYGEN FED IS CONSUMED, AND RECOVERING HYDROGEN PEROXIDE FROM THE WITHDRAWN EFFLUENT.