PURPOSE: To efficiently produce a lower fatty acid ester by reacting a lower fatty acid with a lower olefin in a vapor phase using at least one kind of tungstophosphoric acid salt of a metal having ≥1.1 ion radius as a catalyst.
CONSTITUTION: A lower fatty acid is reacted with a lower olefin in a vapor phase using at least one kind of tungstophosphoric acid salt of a metal having ≥1.1 ion radius and obtained by dissolving a commercial tungstophosphoric acid in water, adding nitrate, carbonate, chloride, etc., of barium, gold, sodium, etc., as powder or aqueous solution to the solution and then evaporating and removing most of water content of the mixture and subjecting the resultant solid substance to heat treatment in an inert gas atmosphere of air or nitrogen, etc., at 100-300°C as a catalyst to provide the objective lower fatty acid ester such as ethyl acetate. The catalyst has high space-time yield and long life and is advantageous to the above-mentioned reaction.
SUZUKI TOSHIRO
WAKABAYASHI SHOICHIRO
SANO KENICHI
