Process for the preparation of carboxylic acid salts

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE PREPARATION OF A SALT OF AT LEAST ONE OXYGEN-CONTAINING ORGANIC ACID FROM AT LEAST ONE OXYGEN-CONTAINING COMPOUND REACTANT SELECTED FROM GROUP CONSISTING OF UNSUBSTITUTED ALIPHATIC AND UNSUBSTITUTED MONOCYCLIC ARALKYL PRIMARY ALCOHOLS HAVING BETWEEN 1 AND 40 CARBON ATOMS; UNSUBSTITUTED ALIPHATIC AND UNSUBSTITUTED MONOCYCLIC ARALKYL ALDEHYDES HAVING BETWEEN 1 AND 40 CARBON ATOMS; UNSUBSTITUTED ALIPHATIC ALDOLS HAVING BETWEEN 1 AND 40 CARBON ATOMS; UNSUBSTITUTED ALIPHATIC ACETALS HAVING BETWEEN 1 AND 40 CARBON ATOMS AND AT LEAST TWO HYDROGEN ATOMS ON AT LEAST ONE OF THE CARBON ATOMS ADJACENT TO AT LEAST ONE OF THE ETHER OXYGEN ATOMS; UNSUBSTITUTED ALIPHATIC MONOETHERS HAVING BETWEEN 1 AND 40 CARBON ATOMS AND AT LEAST TWO HYDROGEN ATOMS ON AT LEAST ONE OF THE CARBON ATOMS ADJACENT TO THE ETHER OXYGEN ATOM; AND ORGANIC ESTERS HAVING BETWEEN 1 AND 40 CARBON ATOMS WHEREIN THE ACID AND ALCOHOL PORTIONS OF THE ESTER ARE ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBON RADICALS COMPRISING CONTACTING SAID OXYGEN-CONTAINING COMPOUND REACTANT IN THE LIQUID PHASE WITH AN ALKALI METAL COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF ALKALI METAL OXIDES AND HYDROXIDES UNDER OXIDATIVE DEHYDROGENATION CONDITIONS INCLUDING A TEMPERATURE BETWEEN 175* AND 400*C. AND A PRESSURE SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN THE REACTANTS IN THE LIQUID PHASE IN THE PRESENCE OF AT LEAST 0.1 WEIGHT PERCENT SOLID CARBON BASED ON THE AMOUNT OF SAID OXYGEN-CONTAINING COMPOUND REACTANT, SAID SOLID CARBON HAVING A SURFACE AREA BETWEEN 25 AND 1700 SQUARE METERS PER GRAM.