Abstract: A process for producing a purified alcohol giving satisfactory results in a sulfuric acid coloring test is provided. A process for producing a purified alcohol which includes the following steps: a condensation step in which an aldehyde is subjected to aldol condensation and dehydration to obtain the corresponding condensate, a hydrogenation step in which the condensate is hydrogenated to obtain a crude alcohol, and a purification step in which the crude alcohol is distilled to obtain a purified alcohol, characterized in that the crude alcohol in which the concentration of one or more compounds having an oxygen-containing heterocycle having a carbon-carbon double bond in the ring is 200 weight ppm or lower is fed to the purification step. Specifically, the aldehyde is normal butyraldehyde, the condensate is 2-ethylhexenal, and the alcohol is 2-ethylhexanol.

Abstract: A process for producing purified alcohols yielding good results in the acid wash color test which comprises the condensation step of subjecting an aldehyde to aldol condensation and dehydration to obtain a corresponding condensate, the hydrogenation step of hydrogenating the condensate into a crude alcohol, and the purification step of distilling the crude alcohol to obtain a purified alcohol, characterized by feeding into the purification step a crude alcohol containing compounds having oxygenic heterocycles bearing carbon-carbon double bonds in the cycle in a concentration of as low as 200 ppm by weight or below. In particular, the aldehyde is n-butyraldehyde, the condensate is 2-ethylhexenal, and the alcohol is 2-ethylhexanol.