Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Thomas Hirth on the occasion of his 60th birthdayOxymethylene ethers (OME) are an attractive alternative to fossil diesel fuel due to strongly reduced harmful emissions. An anhydrous, liquid phase production process based on dimethyl ether (DME) has been elaborated, which offers high selectivity and economic advantages. A catalyst screening for the reaction of DME with trioxane has been carried out. Highly active catalysts could be identified and further insight into the relationship between catalyst properties and catalytic performance could be gained. Furthermore, production in a continuous process could be realized, disclosing the influence of kinetics on OME formation and enabling a better understanding of the reaction mechanism.

In the field of alternative diesel fuels, so-called oxymethylene ethers (OMEs) are actually intensely investigated. Particularly OMEs of the type CH3O(CH2O)nCH3 with n = 3 – 5 exhibit promising fuel...

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