Thermoregulated phase-transfer ligands and catalysis. Part VI. Two-phase hydroformylation of styrene catalyzed by the thermoregulated phase-transfer catalyst OPGPP/Rh

A novel nonionic water-soluble octylpolyglycol-phenylene-phosphite (OPGPP) was synthesized and the two-phase hydroformylation of styrene catalyzed by an OPGPP/Rh catalyst was investigated fully. The catalyst displayed excellent catalytic activity; high styrene conversion and high aldehyde yield (99.6 and 99.3%, respectively) were obtained at 80°C and 5.0 MPa, and the molar ratio of branched/normal aldehyde was 4.8. The experimental results revealed that there was a ‘thermoregulated phase-transfer catalysis (TRPTC)’ process present in the reactions.