Coupled process of aldol condensation/hydrogenation of methyl ethyl ketone in the presence of a bifunctional heterogeneous catalyst

The processes of catalytic homocondensation of methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) in the presence of basic and acid heterogeneous catalysts were studied. A Pd/activated carbon catalytic system was proposed for coupling the processes of MEK condensation and hydrogenation of its products. It was found that high selectivity (more than 90%) for the sum of two condensation/hydrogenation products (5-methylheptan-3-one and 3-methylheptane) can be achieved in a hydrogen atmosphere, with the MEK conversion reaching up to 43%.