CATALYSTS FOR POLYESTER PRODUCTION, PROCESS FOR PRODUCING POLYESTER, AND POLYESTER

By the present invention, there are provided a catalyst for polyester preparation, which comprises a solid titanium compound containing titanium, oxygen, carbon and hydrogen and having a Ti-O bond and which has a maximum solubility in ethylene glycol, as measured when the catalyst is dissolved in ethylene glycol under heating at 150 DEG C, of not less than 3,000 ppm in terms of a titanium atom, a catalyst for polyester preparation, which comprises a titanium-containing solution wherein a contact product of a hydrolyzate of a titanium halide or a hydrolyzate of a titanium alkoxide with a polyhydric alcohol is dissolved in ethylene glycol in an amount of 3,000 to 100,000 ppm in terms of a titanium atom, a process for preparing a polyester using the catalyst, and a polyester prepared by the process. According to the present invention, a polyester can be prepared with a higher catalytic activity as compared with a case of using a conventional catalyst, and a polyester having better transparency, better hue and lower acetaldehyde content can be obtained as compared with a process using an antimony compound as a polycondensation catalyst.