ALPHA OLEFINS PRODUCTION

The C₁₂-C₁₆ alpha olefins are produced by dehydrogenation of nparaffins, dehydrochlorination of monochloroparaffins, or by oligomerization of ethylene using trialkyl aluminum (Ziegler catalyst). Recently, it was found that iridium complexes catalyze the dehydrogenation of n-paraffins to α-olefins. The reaction uses a soluble iridium catalyst to  transfer hydrogen to the olefinic acceptor. The following shows the oligomerization of ethylene using triethylaluminum:

The triethylaluminum and l-butene are recovered by the reaction between tributylaluminum and ethylene:

Alpha olefins are important compounds for producing biodegradable detergents. They are sulfonated and neutralized to alpha olefin sulfonates (AOS):

Alkylation of benzene using alpha olefins produces linear alkylbenzenes, which are further sulfonated and neutralized to linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LABS). These compounds constitute, with alcohol ethoxysulfates and ethoxylates, the basic active ingredients for household detergents.

Alpha olefins could also be carbonylated in presence of an alcohol using a cobalt catalyst to produce esters:

Transesterification with penterithritol produces penterithritol esters and releases the alcohol.