Percarboxylic acid production employing a pretreated, dehydrated acid cation exchange resin

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR PRODUCING A WATER SOLUBLE CARBOXYLIC PERACID BY REACTING THE CORRESPONDING CARBOXYLIC ACID OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF THE LOWER ALKANOIC ACIDS AND THEIR FLUORO, CHLORO, AND BROMO-SUBSTITUTION PRODUCTS WITH HYDROGEN PEROXIDE IN THE PRESENCE OF A RESIN SUBSTANTIALLY INSOLUBLE IN THE REACTION MIXTURE AND CONTAINING ACIDIC CATION-EXCHANGE GROUPS, THE IMPROVEMENT OF PRETREATING SAID CATION EXCHANGE RESIN CATALYST WITH A PEROXYGEN-CONTAINING SOLUTION IN THE SUBSTANTIAL ABSENCE OF SAID EACTANTS UNTIL THE LOSS OF HYDROGEN PEROXIDE BY DECOMPOSITION IN CONTACT WITH THE CATALYST IS SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED, CONTACTING SAID REACTANTS WITH A WATER ADSORPTIVE FORM OF SAID RESIN IN THE PRESENCE OF A SOLUTION OF SAID CARBOXYLIC ACID AND CORRESPONDING PERACID IN AN ORGANIC SOLVENT FOR THE CARBOXYLIC ACID AND CORRESPONDING PERACID WHICH SOLVENT HAS A SOLUBILITY IN WATER AND A SOLUBILITY FOR WATER NEITHER OF WHICH IS GREATER THAN 10% AND WHICH IS INERT UNDER THE REACTION CONDITIONS WHICH HAS A SOLUBILITY IN WATER AND A SOLUBILITY FOR WATER NEITHER OF WHICH IS GREATER THAN 10% AND WHICH IS INERT UNDER THE REACTION CONDITIONS WHICH SOLUTION HAS BEEN OBTAINED BY ELUTING WITH SAID SOLVENT ACIDIC CATION-EXCHANGE RESIN DIRECTLY AFTER USE AS CATALYST AND WATER ADSORPTION AGENT IN THE REACTION.