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The development of a process for the synthesis of methyl methacrylate (MMA) from coal-derived syngas can alleviate the environmental hazards associated with the current commercial MMA technology, the acetone cyanohydrin (ACH) process. A three-step syngas-based process consisted of synthesis of a propionic acid, its condensation with formaldehyde, and esterification of resulting methacrylic acid (MAA) to form MMA. The first two steps, propionic acid synthesis and condensation, are discussed here. The low-temperature, low-pressure process for single-step hydrocarbonylation of ethylene to propionic acid is carried out using a homogeneous iodinepromoted Mo (CO) 6 catalyst at pressures (30-70 atm) and temperatures (150-200°C) lower than those reported for other catalysts. Mechanistic investigations suggest that catalysis is initiated by a rate-limiting CO dissociation from Mo(CO) 6 . This dissociation appears to be followed by an inner electron-transfer process of an I atom from EtI to the coordinately unsaturated Mo(CO) 5 . This homogeneous catalyst for propionate synthesis represents the first case of an efficient carbonylation process based on Cr group metals. The condensation of formaldehyde with propionic acid is carried out by acid-base bifunctional catalysts. As a result of screening over 80 catalytic materials, group V metals (V, Nb, and Ta) supported on an amorphous silica are found to be most effective. A 20% Nb/SiO 2 catalyst appears to be the most active and stable catalyst thus far. Preliminary relations among the reaction yield and catalyst properties indicate that a high surface area and a low overall surface acidity (<50 ) mol of NH 3 /g), with a high proportion of the acidity being weak (<350°C desorption of NH 3 ), are desirable. Long-term deactivation of V-Si-P, Nb-Si, and Ta-Si catalysts suggests that carbon deposition is the primary cause for activity decay, and the catalyst activity is partially restorable by oxidative regeneration.

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