Continuous Flow Synthesis of n-Alkyl Chlorides in a High-Temperature Microreactor Environment

Applying continuous flow processing in a high-temperature/high-pressure regime, n-alkyl chlorides can be prepared in high yields and selectivity by direct uncatalyzed chlorodehydroxylation of the corresponding n-alcohols with 30% aqueous hydrochloric acid. Optimum conditions for the preparation of n-butyl and n-hexyl chloride involve the use of a glass microreactor chip, a reaction temperature of 160–180 °C (20 bar backpressure) and a residence time of 15 min.