ABSTRACT
Formaldehyde is a hazardous, self-reactive, and costly chemical that traditionally has been avoided in chemical synthesis. However, a number of important chemicals, e.g., methyl methacrylate and styrene, might be produced more safely and with much less pollution from formaldehyde than by their current commercial processes. This research introduces the concept of in situ generation of formaldehyde, i.e., the generation and consumption of formaldehyde in the same reactor, so that there is no net production.
