Carbonylations

Carbon monoxide CO can be seen as a synthon available to the chemist, enabling the preparation of a product with an n + 1 carbon skeleton from a product with an n-carbon carbon skeleton. Carbonylation reactions lead to products with a new function, which may be an aldehyde, an acid, an ester, an amide, an alcohol, an anhydride, an isocyanate or other. The low cost of this synthon and its preparation from raw materials of very diverse origins (oil, coal, natural gas) make it a raw material of choice for industry, and in particular for the synthesis of the major basic products of the chemical industry.

While the range of reactions possible with carbon monoxide is extremely diverse, its toxicity and difficult handling make it a reagent limited in its use to specific units.

After reviewing the main properties and sources of CO, this article presents a few reactions that lead to industrial products. The possibilities offered by these reactions will be discussed.