Reppe Vinylation

Abstract

The strong‐base catalyzed addition of acetylene to form a variety of vinylic compounds is generally referred to as the Reppe vinylation or Reppe synthesis. It has been suggested that acetylene can be handled safely under these reaction conditions being an explosive substance. The study finds the option of dilution with inert nitrogen is good for an autoclave operation, whereas the condition with minimized free space is good for continuous operation, especially with solid contact catalyst. Several reactions have been discussed using catalysts, such as KOH, zinc, cadmium acetates, and zinc naphthenate. This reaction has very important industrial applications for the production of vinylic monomers for polymerization.