Phase-Transfer Catalysis, "PTC," is used in the manufacture of approximately $10 billion/yr of polymers, monomers, pharmaceuticals, agricultural chemicals, additives, dyes, flavors & fragrances, surfactants and many other specialty and fine chemicals and intermediates. PTC is widely used in industry since it offers high yield with reduced cycle time, reduced or no added solvent, mild reaction conditions, enhanced environmental performance, advantageous alternate raw materials (especially for base-catalyzed reactions), higher plant operability and sometimes better selectivity, for many common commercial organic reactions. The scope of PTC applications is enormous with >2000 patents in 40 reaction categories.

This 1.5-hour seminar will cover:

• Benefits and barriers to commercializing industrial phase-transfer catalysis processes
  
• Mechanistic and practical process considerations for developing PTC processes
  including catalyst "q-value and C#" parameters, effective catalyst separation & tips for working with water-sensitive compounds
  
• Industrial applications including process performance achievements
  including C-/N-/S-/chiral alkylations, etherification, esterification, transesterification, cyanation, azidation, Michael addition, oxidation, epoxidation and reduction
  
• Guidelines and practical tools for identifying and evaluating profit and process improvement opportunities for your company

Dr. Halpern is the founder and president of PTC Organics, Inc. which is the only company dedicated exclusively to developing and licensing high-performance low-cost processes for the manufacture of organic chemicals using Phase Transfer Catalysis. Dr. Halpern has provided PTC services at > 190 industrial sites in the US, Europe and Asia and has helped chemical companies save > $150 million. Dr. Halpern has an impressive track record during his 21 years in industry at Dow Chemical (process chemist), ICI (supervisor of process chemistry), Sybron Chemicals (Director of R&D) and PTC Organics (founder and president). Dr. Halpern co-authored the best-selling PTC book "Phase-Transfer Catalysis: Fundamentals, Applications and Industrial Perspectives" (Chapman and Hall, 1994), edited the book "Phase-Transfer Catalysis: Mechanism and Syntheses" (ACS, 1997), wrote the PTC chapter in Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry and is editor of "Industrial Phase-Transfer Catalysis" (formerly "Phase-Transfer Catalysis Communications)," the first publication dedicated to industrial phase-transfer catalysis.