Production of hydrogen peroxide by anthraquinone process

Claim 2

In the method of producing hydrogen peroxide by the alternate reduction and oxidation of an alkylated anthraquinone as the working material dissolved in a solvent and constituting a liquid working solution, and wherein the working solution is hydrogenated by cOntact with hydrogen in the presence of a hydrogenation catalyst, the improvement which comprises contacting said working solution and hydrogen at temperatures of from about 20* to 150* C. and at pressures of from about 5 to 100 p.s.i.g. in the presence of a spherical catalyst having a size of about 0.15 to about 6.5 millimeters in diameter and consisting essentially of 0.05 to about 5 percent by weight of metallic palladium dispersed essentially uniformly over the surface of alumina supporting spheres, said alumina supporting spheres: a. having as their major crystalline structure a member selected from the group consisting of delta-alumina and theta-alumina, b. being substantially free of either alpha-alumina, gamma-alumina, or alpha-alumina monohydrate, c. having substantially no pores whose diameter are larger than about 0.06 micron, d. having a BET surface area of from about 90 to 200 m.2lg., and e. having said metallic palladium penetrating into their surface pores no more than 50 microns.

Claim 3

The method of producing hydrogen peroxide according to claim 3 in which the working solution is contacted with hydrogen in a fixed bed of said catalyst.