Hydrogenation of heptaldehyde to heptyl alcohol with nickel catalysts

Hydrogenation of heptaldehyde to heptyl alcohol was studied with W2 Raney nickel catalyst, prepared in the laboratory, commercial Raney nickel catalyst and Rufert nickel catalyst by varying temperature, catalyst concentration, hydrogen pressure and reaction time. The products were analyzed by gas-liquid chromatography on SE-30 column. The optimum conditions found for quantitative conversion (99.6%) of heptaldehyde to heptyl alcohol were: temperature, 100°C, W2 Raney nickel catalyst concentration, 2% based on heptaldehyde (w/w), hydrogen pressure, 145 psig and reaction time, 1 h. IICT Communication No. 3085.