Description:FORM 2

THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
THE PATENT RULES, 2003

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(See Section 10 and Rule 13)

Title of invention:
A CATALYST PREPARATION APPARATUS

APPLICANT
VINATI ORGANICS LIMITED
An Indian entity
having address,
Parinee Crescenzo, "A" Wing, 11th floor, 1102,
'G' Block, Behind MCA, Bandra-Kurla Complex, Bandra (east),
Mumbai – 400051, India

The following specification describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS AND PRIORITY
The present application claims no priority from any of the patent application(s).
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present subject matter described herein, in general, is about a catalyst preparation system for the preparation of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons. More specifically, an apparatus and a process for the preparation of a catalyst which is later used as a catalyst in preparation of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons.

BACKGROUND
Catalyst plays an important role in various industries such as petrochemicals, plastics, pharmaceuticals, fermentation, etc. Use of a proper catalyst in a large scale industrial process can save lot of energy. Heterogenous catalysis is usually employed in large scale applications for the synthesis of chemical compounds/products such as in perfume industry, biofuel, petroleum, chemical industries, etc.

Catalysts required for the side-chain alkylation of aromatic compounds are known in the art. The reactions comprises the presence of a catalysts made up of activated oxide doped with magnesium hydroxide and potassium metal, impregnation with potassium hydride are also described. Use of other catalysts like diatomaceous earth in addition to NaK and potassium oxide, impregnating zirconium oxide powder or potassium zirconate with potassium hydroxide solution and apply sodium to the support produced, aluminum oxide, calcium oxide or as catalyst Zirconium oxide is used, which is impregnated with aqueous KOH and after was calcined at a temperature of 500 to 550 ° C. The carrier comes with metallic sodium coated are described in prior arts.
Alkali metals are known in the art for their propensity for side-chain alkylation of alkyl aromatics or alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons. Alkali metal catalyst used comprise of an alkali metal supported on a carrier such that the the alkali metal is dispersed on the carrier material. The carrier usually comprise of a porous material of alkali carbonate such as potassium carbonate or potassium bicarbonate.
Conventional catalyst preparation s known in the art includes use of a porous carrier material so that the surface area for the adsorption of the metal catalyst is larger. However, the use of porous catalyst carrier may be difficult to maintain in a large-scale application. Further, synthesis of a porous catalyst in-situ is labourius, may involve the use of large machinery and high mechanical pressure.
Conventional catalyst preparation system includes use an agitator or propellers or a combination thereof utilized to mix the catalyst composition. The catalyst preparation system used conventionally could not be used in continuation with the system utilized for the preparation of alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons.
For the preparation of certain alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons a catalyst that is freshly prepared is required in order to ensure good catalytic activity of the catalyst and to obtain a desirable yield. In such cases, use of pre-made catalyst might result in the formation of unnecessary impurities or decrese in the catalyst activity and the final product yield. Thus, a catalyst preparation system that can prepare the catalyst in-situ is necessary. Further, an alternative to the use of porous catalyst carrier is needed. These drawbacks makes the catalyst less convenient to manufacture and process.
Therefore, there is a long-felt need of a catalyst preparation system that can prepare the required alkali metal catalyst in-situ. Further, the system can be used with the alkylated aromatic hydrocarbon preparation system such that the freshly prepared catalyst can be directly added to the reactor utilized for the preparation of alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons which may further reduce the time required for the reaction and improve the reaction yield.
OBJECTIVES OF INVENTION
One of the objective of the present invention is to provide a system for the preparation of catalyst for the production of side-chain alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons such that the catalytic activity of catalyst is retained and it provides a good yield of the product.

Another objective is to provide a process for the preparation of catalyst having a good catalytic activity, yield of the final product and reduce the overall time required.
In one of the embodiment of the invention, the objective is to develop a system for the catalyst preparation for alkylation of side-chain of aromatic compounds such that it gives utmost yield in a reduced reaction time.
SUMMARY
This summary is not intended to identify essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended for use in determining or limiting the scope of the claimed subject matter. This summary is provided to introduce concept related to apparatus and process for catalyst preparation for the alkylation of aromatic hydrocarbons, and the concepts are further described below in the detailed description.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a catalyst preparation system in a preparation of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons may comprise a carrier drying unit, a solvent drying unit and a catalyst preparation apparatus. The catalyst preparation apparatus may further comprise a crusher element configured for crushing catalyst carrier to obtain uniform crushed carrier particles and an agitator element configured to mix and coat one or more catalyst preparation components such as a dried catalyst carrier, a dried organic solvent, and alkali metal catalyst, wherein the catalyst drying unit, the solvent drying unit and the catalyst preparation apparatus components are linked via a closed conduit connection.
In another embodiment, a process for preparation of a catalyst of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons by a catalyst preparation system is disclosed. The process may comprise a step of drying the catalyst carrier in a carrier drying unit to obtain a dried catalyst carrier. The process may comprise a step of adding organic solvent in the catalyst preparation apparatus for a predetermined time from a solvent drying unit. The process may comprise a step of forming a reaction mixture by adding the dried catalyst carrier, and the alkali metal catalyst in the catalyst preparation apparatus for a predetermined time. The process may comprise a step of heating the reaction mixture for a predetermined time and temperature to obtain an alkali metal catalyst in molten form. The process may comprise a step of simultaneous crushing and coating the dried catalyst carrier in presence of the solvent over a molten alkali metal catalystfor a predetermined time to obtain a uniform slurry of the catalyst of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
The detailed description of the drawings is outlined with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit (s) of a reference number identifies the Figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the drawings to refer like features and components.
Figure 1 depicts a Catalsyt preparation system (100) showing the adjacent arrangement of crusher and agitator element, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
Figure 2 depicts a Step-wise process (200) for the preparation of catalyst, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
Figure 3 depicts an embodiment (300) of Catalsyt preparation apparatus showing the arrangement of crusher and agitator element on the same shaft, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Reference throughout the specification to "various embodiments," "some embodiments," "one embodiment," or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, appearances of the phrases "in various embodiments," "in some embodiments," "in one embodiment," or "in an embodiment" in places throughout the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

The words "comprising," "having," "containing," and "including," and other forms thereof are intended to be equivalent in meaning and be open-ended in that an item or items following any one of these words is not meant to be an exhaustive listing of such item or items or meant to be limited to only the listed item or items.
It must also be noted that the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Although any methods similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of embodiments of the present disclosure, the exemplary methods are described. The disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the disclosure, which may be embodied in various forms.
Various modifications to the embodiment may be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles herein may be applied to other embodiments. However, one of ordinary skill in the art may readily recognize that the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments illustrated but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features described herein. The detailed description of the invention will be described hereinafter referring to accompanied drawings.
In one embodiment of the invention, referring to Figure 1 a catalyst preparation system (100) is disclosed. The catalyst preparation system (100) may comprise a carrier drying unit (101), a solvent drying unit (102) and a catalyst preparation apparatus (103).
In related embodiment, the catalyst preparation system (100) may comprise a carrier drying unit (101) enabled for removal of any moisture contained in the catalyst carrier. The carrier drying unit (101) may comprise a vacuum drying apparatus (not shown). Vacuum drying is generally used to allow the removal of moisture under vacuum and hence at a lower temperature condition and oxygen content. Thus, it is suitable for heat and oxygen-sensitive materials. The carrier drying unit employs vacuum pumps that reduces the pressure and humidity within the chambers of catalyst preparation system (100) and particularly inside carrier drying unit (101). By lowering the atmospheric pressure within the chamber, the materials inside dry more quickly through contact with the indirectly heated walls.
In one embodiment, the carrier drying unit (101) may preferably used for drying and moisture removal of carrier material such as metal carbonate or metal bicarbonates. Carrier drying is vital to ensure that the metal catalyst is uniformly distributed on the surface of the carrier material. The uniform distribution of the alkali metal catalyst on the carrier material is necessary for good product yield of alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons.
In another related embodiment of the present disclosure, the said solvent drying unit (102) may comprise a molecular sieve adsorber (not shown) with a controlled flow rate. The said molecular sieve abosorver is employed for adsorption of the water molecules a molecular sieve. In one example, the pore size of the molecular sieve maybe in the range of 2-4 A°. In a preferred embodiment, a molecular sieve having a pore size of 3 A° is used. When the molecular sieve in solvent drying unit (102) is saturated with water molecules the molecular sieve may be regenerated with hot nitrogen flow.
In one of the embodiments of the invention, the carrier drying unit (101), and the solvent drying unit (102) are configured to remove moisture from the catalyst carrier and the organic solvent and to obtain a dried catalyst carrier and a dried organic solvent. For the preparation of heterogenous catalyst, drying of the catalyst carrier is a vital aspect. As drying of the catalyst and the solvent ensures the proper adsorption of the alkali metal on the surface of the carrier. In one embodiment, carrier drying may not be limited to vacuum drying. Carrier drying may also be carried out by fan drying, hot air stream drying, drying in an inert as chamber especially in a nitrogen or carbon dioxide flow, if required, under reduced pressure in the carrier drying unit.
In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the said catalyst preparation system (100) may comprise a catalyst preparation apparatus (103) to which inlets of the carrier drying unit (101), and the solvent drying unit (102). The catalyst preparation apparatus (103) may also comprise a alkali metal catalyst inlet (104).
In further embodiment of the present invention, the said catalyst preparation system (100) comprising a crusher element (105) configured to crush catalyst carrier, and to obtain uniform crushed carrier particles, and an agitator element (106) configured to simultaneously mix and coat one or more catalyst preparation components such as the dried catalyst carrier, the dried organic solvent, and an alkali metal catalyst, wherein the alkali metal catalyst inlet (104), the catalyst drying unit (101), the solvent drying unit (102) and the catalyst preparation apparatus are linked via a closed conduit connection.
In another embodiment, again referring to Figure 1, the said agitator element (106) is positioned slightly off-set to the centre of the catalyst preparation system (100). The agitator (106) may be comprising any one but not limited to anchor agitator, paddle agitator, radial propeller agitator, propeller agitator, turbine agitator, helical agitator. The said agitator element (106) may comprise paddles such as but not limited to flat paddles, finger paddles, gate paddles. The position of the agitator element (106) is such that is it placed slightly off-set to the centre of the catalyst preparation apparatus enabling simultaneous crushing, mixing, and coating of the molten catalyst on the carrier.
In a related embodiment, the said agitator element (106) and crusher element (105) maybe positioned adjacent to each other inside catalyst preparation system (100). The agitator element (106) and the crusher element (105) are positioned such that the crushing and coating of the carrier and the alkali metal catalyst occurs simultaneously further reducing time required for the catalyst preparation and to obtain a suspension of molten catalyst coated carrier in the solvent with improved surface area.
In yet another related embodiment, referring to Figure 1 and 3, the crusher element (105) and the agitator element (106) may be positioned on the same shaft (300). The said agitator and crusher element are positioned such that the agitator element and crusher element may be place on the same shaft either agitator element on top of crusher element or crusher element on top of agitator element to employ simulataneous crushing of the catalyst carrier and coating of the alkali metal catalyst over the crushed fine particles of the catalyst carrier.
In a further emebodiment, the crusher element (106) maybe a wet crusher cum high-speed agitator. The crusher element is a type of wet crusher comprising a high-speed agitator element. In an exemplary embodiment, the said agitator element is configured to mix the components in a speed range of 1000-4000 rpm. In one embodiment, the said crusher element is configured to form a susepended solution of organic solvent, and a catalyst uniformly coated over finely crushed particles of the catalyst carrier.
In a related embodiment, as described in the previous embodiments the crusher element may comprise aa teeth-like structure for uniform crushing and of the catalyst carrier and reducing the particle size. The crusher element (105) is configured to crush the carrier particles in order to obtain a larger surface area for the coating of the alkali catalyst.
In one embodiment of the present invention, referring to Figure 2 a process (200) for preparation of catalyst of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons by a catalyst preparation system (100)comprising one or more steps is disclosed. In the first step of the catalyst preparation process, drying (201) the catalyst carrier in a carrier drying unit (101) is performed to obtain a dried catalyst carrier. In the next step addition(202) organic solvent in the catalyst preparation apparatus (103) for a predetermined time from a solvent drying unit (102) is carried out. Further, the process (200) may comprise a step of adding (203) the dried catalyst carrier and alkali metal catalyst for the alkali metal catalyst inlet (104) in the catalyst preparation apparatus (103) for a predetermined time, The process (200) may comprise a further step of heating and mixing (204) the mixture for a predetermined time and temperature to obtain the alkali metal catalyst in molten form. The said process (200) may further involve simultaneous crushing and coating (205) the dried catalyst carrier in presence of the solvent for a predetermined time to obtain a uniform suspended slurry of the catalyst for alkylation of aromatic hydrocarbons.
In a related embodiment, the catalyst carrier comprise potassium carbonate, potassium bicarbonate, sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate but not limited to. The catalyst carrier may be any alkaline metal carbonate, bicarbonate, its salt that is able to adsorb the said metal catalyst on its surface.
In another related embodiment, the alkali metal catalyst may comprise sodium, potassium, lithium, rubidium, caesium, francium but not limited to. The alkali metal catalyst maybe any metal that can catalyst the alkylation of side-chain aromatic compounds. In one embodiment, the catalyst preparation system (100) is implemented is such way that it solves the problem of improving catalytic activity of sodium metal in a closed system and enables immediate addition of catalyst coated over carrier to a main reaction unit. As known in the art, sodium is unstable in an open system and therefore in the present disclosure melting and coating of the sodium catalyst is carried out in a closed catalyst preparation apparatus (103) over a crushed catalyst carrier thereby eliminating any air or moisture contact and improving the reaction safety as well as catalyst activity.
In yet another related embodiment, the organic solvent is an aromatic hydrocarbon compound such as but not limited to m-xylene, cumene, methanol, hexene, isobutyl benzene, n-butyl benzene, tertiary amyl benzene. The use of organic solvent in a dried form was to ensure that the catalyst slurry obtained is in homogenous and uniform composition.
In one embodiment, the predefined time for addition of organic solvent is in the range of 1-10 mins. In a preferred embodiment, the predefined time for addition of organic solvent is about 5 mins.
In one of the embodiment, the predefined time for the addition of catalyst carrier and alkali metal catalyst is in the range of 10-40 mins. In a preferred embodiment, the predefined time for the addition of catalyst carrier and alkali metal catalyst is around 25 mins.
In one of the embodiment, the predefined temperature for heating the mixture of alkali metal catalyst and catalyst carrier to obtain alkali metal catalyst in a molten form is in the range of 90-100°C or for about 20-40 mins. More preferably, the mixture of alkali metal catalyst and catalyst carrier is heated at 97°C for about 30 mins to ensure the metallic sodium has converted to molten form for appropriate coating on the carrier.
In further embodiment, the catalyst slurry is digested for around 15 mins in the catalyst preparation apparatus (103). The catalyst slurry is digested in order to obtain a homogenous and uniform solution.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the particle size of the alkali metal catalyst coated over the catalyst carrier in a range of 25-100µm. In a preferred embodiment, the particle size of the catalyst coated over the carrier is >50µm. The layer coated on the carrier by the alkali metal catalyst is vital since too small layer might lead to lesser catalytic capacity further requiring more catalyst per batch reaction.
In an examplory embodiment, the catalyst preparation system (100) may comprise a carrier drying unit (101), a solvent drying unit (102) and a catalyst preparation apparatus(103) wherein the system is connected to a alkylation reactor (not shown) that is employed for the preparation of alkylated aromatic compounds via a conduit/channel/tube.The instant subject matter is further described by the following examples:
Experimental examples:
Example 1: Preparation of catalyst in a synthesis of MIBT(m-isobutyl toluene)
A Catalyst carrier is prepared by adding K2CO3 in a catalyst drying unit and organic solvent is prepared by adding m-xylene in solvent drying unit. After the drying process both dried K2CO3 and m-xylene are added in the catalyst preparation apparatus. Sodium is added in the catalyst preparation apparatus and the apparatus is heated at 97°C to obtain molten sodium. Further, the crushing and coating of the carrier K2CO3 take place simultaneously and a uniform catalyst slurry is obtained which is directly added to a reactor for the preparation of MIBT.

Example 2: Effect of uncrushed K2CO3 on the product yield
The reaction is carried out with crushed K2CO3 mixed with sodium and uncrushed K2CO3 coated by molten sodium catalyst in a catalyst preparation system (100) to check the effect of crushing of the carrier. It is observed from Table 1 that the product yield (MIBT) is maximum when the carrier K2CO3 was simultaneously crushed and the molten catalyst was coated over the uniformly crushed carrier. In conclusion, crushing of the carrier gives better product recovery then the use of uncrushed carrier.
Table 1: Effect of crushed and uncrushed carrier on the product yield
Expt.no. Moles of M xylene Mole ratio Catalyst qty MIBT % Total Heavies % Remarks
1 7.60 0.58 106+12.5 37.19 13.45 Crushed K2CO3 in the catalyst preparation system
2 7.60 0.58 106+10.7 35.74 12.75 Crushed K2CO3 ¬ in the catalyst preparation system
3 7.60 0.58 106+10.9 36.97 11.33 Crushed K2CO3 in the catalyst preparation system
4 7.60 1.68 106+10.5 14.63 3.65 Uncrushed K2CO3

Example 3: Effect of less catalyst quantity on the product yield
The reaction is carried out with less quantity of sodium and K2CO3 to check the effect of quantity of catalyst on the product yield. It was observed that product yield was maximum when the quantity of catalyst was in a the given range (Table 2). In conclusion, quantity of catalyst coated over a carrier by implementing the disclosed catalyst preparation system (100) to be utilized in the catalyst preparation process need to be in a certain range enabled obtain good product recovery.

Table 2: Effect of catalyst quantity on the product yield
Expt.no. Moles of m-xylene Mole ratio Catalyst qty MIBT % Total Heavies % Remarks
1 7.60 0.58 106+12.5 37.19 13.45 Usual qty of catalyst coated over carrier by catalyst preparation system (100)
2 7.60 1.28 75+7.5 9.42 2.98 Less qty. of catalyst
3 7.60 0.58 106+10.7 35.74 12.75 Usual qty of catalyst coated over carrier by catalyst preparation system (100)
4 7.60 0.58 106+10.9 36.97 11.33 Usual qty of catalyst coated over carrier by catalyst preparation system (100)

Example 4: Effect of charging higher concentration of organic solvent on the product yield
The reaction is carried out with higher concentration of m-xylene as a solvent in a catalyst preparation system (100). The uniform suspension of catalyst slurry comprising catalyst coated over a carrier and suspended in the organic solvent acting as a starting material in the side-chain aromatic alkylation is utilized to determine effect concentration of organic solvent on the product yield. It was observed that product yield was maximum when the concentration of organic solvent was in a the given range (Table 3). In conclusion, the concentration of organic solvent utilized needs to be in a certain range in order to obtain a good product yield.
Table 3: Effect of charin higher concentration of m-xylene on the product yield
Expt.no. Moles of m-xylene Mole ratio Catalyst qty MIBT % Total Heavies % Remarks
1 9.46 0.84 132+13.6 26.79 7.41 Higher m-xylene charged in a uniform suspension of catalyst slurry
2 7.60 0.58 106+12.5 37.19 13.45 Usual conc. Of m-xylene a uniform suspension of catalyst slurry
6 7.60 0.58 106+10.7 35.74 12.75 Usual conc. Of m-xylene a uniform suspension of catalyst slurry
7 7.60 0.58 106+10.9 36.97 11.33 Usual conc. Of m-xylene a uniform suspension of catalyst slurry

In one embodiment of the present invention, the said apparatus and process for the preparation catalyst is enabled to improve the production of alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons.
In another embodiment of the invention, the apparatus and process is in accordance with the present invention may have the following advantages, including but not limited to:
• An improved apparatus for catalyst preparation which is unstable on a closed system
• Uniform and consistent catalyst coating over a carrier formation
• Improved catalytic activity
• Improves quality and quantity of catalyst obtained
• Reduced impurities formed during the formation of the desired product.
Although implementations for an apppratus and process implemented thereon for the preparation catalyst used for the synthesis of alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons have been described in language specific to structural features and/or processes, it is to be understood that the appended claims are not necessarily limited to the specific features or processes described. Rather, the specific features and processes are disclosed as examples of implementations of for an apparatus and process implemented thereon for the preparation of catalyst used for the synthesis of alkylated aromatic hydrocarbons.
, Claims:WE CLAIM:
1. A catalyst preparation system (100) in a preparation of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons comprises:
a carrier drying unit (101), and a solvent drying unit (102); and
a catalyst preparation apparatus (103) comprising:
a crusher element (105) configured for crushing catalyst carrier to obtain uniform crushed carrier particles, and
an agitator element (106) configured to mix and coat one or more catalyst preparation components such as a dried catalyst carrier, a dried organic solvent, and alkali metal catalyst,
wherein the catalyst drying unit (101), the solvent drying unit (102) and the catalyst preparation apparatus (103) are linked via a closed conduit connection.
2. The system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the carrier drying unit (101), and the solvent drying unit is configured to remove moisture from the catalyst carrier and the organic solvent.
3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the said agitator element (106) is positioned slightly off-set to the centre of the apparatus.
4. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the said agitator element (106) and crusher element (105) are positioned adjacent.
5. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the crusher element and the agitator element positioned on a same shaft (300).
6. The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the crusher element (105) is a wet crusher cum high-speed agitator.
7. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the crusher element is having teeth-like structure.
8. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the agitator element (106) is configured to mix and coat a molten catalyst over carrier in a speed range of 1000-4000 rpm.
9. A process (200) for preparation of a catalyst of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons by a catalyst preparation system (100) comprising one or more steps of:
drying (201) a catalyst carrier in a carrier drying unit (101) to obtain a dried catalyst carrier;
adding (202) organic solvent in the catalyst preparation apparatus (103) for a predetermined time from a solvent drying unit (102);
adding (203) the dried catalyst carrier and alkali metal catalyst in the catalyst preparation apparatus (103) for a predetermined time;
heating and mixing (204) the dried carrier and alkali catalyst for a predetermined time and temperature to obtain the alkali metal catalyst in molten form;
simultaneous crushing and coating (205) the dried catalyst carrier in presence of the solvent for a predetermined time to obtain a uniform suspension slurry of the alkali metal catalyst of alkyl aromatic hydrocarbons.
10. The process as claimed in claim 9, wherein the said catalyst carrier comprise potassium carbonate, potassium bicarbonate, sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate.
11. The process as claimed in claim 9, wherein the said alkali metal catalyst comprise sodium, potassium, lithium, rubidium, caesium, francium.
12. The process a claimed in claim 9, wherein the said organic solvent is m-xylene, methanol, hexene, isobutyl benzene, n-butyl benzene, tertiary amyl benzene.
13. The process as claimed in claim 9, wherein the predefined time for addition of organic solvent is around 1-10 mins.
14. The process as claimed in claim 9, wherein the predefined time for the addition of catalyst carrier and alkali metal catalyst is around 10-40 mins.
15. The process as claimed in claim 9, wherein the predefined temperature for heating the mixture to obtain alkali metal catalyst in a molten form is in the range of 90-100°C or for about 30 mins.
Dated this 02nd Day of August 2022

Priyank Gupta
Agent for the Applicant
IN/PA-1454