Preparation of epoxy compounds with cis- and trans-configuration, by starting from mixtures of the corresponding olefin stereoisomers

摘要

Process for separately obtaining the stereoisomeric epoxy compounds by starting from mixtures of olefinic compounds of cis- and trans-configuration without resorting to expensive operations of separation of the same isomers, by carrying out the reaction of oxidation of the mixture of stereoisomer olefinic compounds with hydrogen peroxide, or with compounds capable of producing hydrogen peroxide under the reaction conditions, in the presence of synthetic zeolites containing titanium atoms in two successive steps, by operating in a first step with hydrogen peroxide in an amount substantially equal to the amount, by mol, of olefinic compound with cis-configuration which is present in the mixture, separating the so-obtained epoxy compound of prevailingly cis-configuration from the unreacted olefinic compounds, essentially constituted by isomers with trans-configuration, submitting to oxidation, in another reaction area, the unreacted olefinic compound with prevailingly trans-configuration, by operating with hydrogen peroxide in a substantially equimolecular amount relatively to the amount of unreacted olefinic compound.