Linear alpha olefin
Linear Alpha Olefins (LAO) or Normal Alpha Olefins (NAO) are olefins or alkenes with a chemical formula CxH2x, distinguished from other mono-olefins with a similar molecular formula by linearity of the hydrocarbon chain and the position of the double bond at the primary or alpha position.
Linear alpha olefins are a range of industrially important alpha-olefins, including 1-butene, 1-hexene, 1-octene, 1-decene, 1-dodecene, 1-tetradecene, 1-hexadecene, 1-octadecene and higher blends of C20-C24, C24-C30, and C20-C30 ranges.
Industrially, linear alpha olefins are commonly manufactured by two main routes: oligomerization of ethylene and by Fischer-Tropsch synthesis followed by purification. Another route to linear alpha olefins which has been used commercially on small scale is dehydration of alcohols. Prior to about the 1970s, linear alpha olefins were also manufactured by thermal cracking of waxes, whereas linear internal olefins were also manufactured by chlorination/dehydrochlorination of linear paraffins.
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