Hydroformylation of 1-hexene with a Cobalt Catalyst in Ionic Liquids: a New Efficient Approach for Generation and Recycling of the Catalyst

Hydroformylation of olefins has been performed with a system based on cobalt and pyridine ligands in non-aqueous ionic liquids. In this work, a new approach was developed to recycle the cobalt catalyst without the use of chemicals. For 1-hexene, activity of the [ Co2(CO)8] /Pyridine(2 eq)/[BMIM][ NTf2] at 100 bar and 130°C can reach 110 h-1 with a selectivity for aldehydes of up to 87% (linear to branched ratio being around 1.8). The recycling of the ionic liquid phase was performed several times without loss of activity or selectivity.