Abstract: A process for the recovery of selenium from a urethane solution containing selenium compounds which comprises contacting the selenium-containing urethane solution at a suitable temperature with copper (I) chloride, oxygen or an oxygen-containing gas such as air, and a complexing solvent such as an amine or nitrile to form an insoluble precipitate of copper-selenium compounds or complexes. The selenium and copper may be recovered from the resulting precipitate in a form suitable for reuse in the preparation of urethanes and selenium removal respectively.

Abstract: Method for the production of isocyanates from esters of carbamic acids, (urethanes) by thermally decomposing the ester of the carbamic acid while said ester is dissolved in a suitable inert solvent to produce the isocyanate and alcohol and separately recovering the isocyanate and alcohol.

Abstract: Cyclohexene is converted to 3,6-diacyloxycyclohexene by reaction with a C.sub.2 to C.sub.6 aliphatic acyclic saturated carboxylic acid and an organic hydroperoxide in the presence of a copper catalyst. The diacyloxycyclohexene is hydrolyzed to the corresponding dihydroxycyclohexene and dehydrogenated to hydroquinone. For example, with acetic acid the cyclohexene is converted to the 3,6-diacetoxycyclohexene which after hydrolysis and dehydrogenation gives hydroquinone.

Abstract: A method for the production of isocyanic acid esters (isocyanates) from substituted ureas by thermally decomposing the substituted urea at elevated temperatures while said urea is dissolved in a suitable inert solvent and in the presence of an inert carrier agent to produce the isocyanate and/or amine as overhead products in the vapor phase minimizing the recombination of the isocyanate and the amine and separately recovering the isocyanate and amine.

Abstract: Diperoxides, useful as free radical type polymerization initiators, for example, are preparable from an organic hydroperoxide such as t-butyl hydroperoxide, and a ketone using catalyst comprising molybdenum or vanadium.

Abstract: Compounds of the formula ##EQU1## WHEREIN R is a hydrocarbyl radical selected from the group consisting of alkyl, aralkyl and cycloalkyl having from 3 to 12 carbon atoms and n is an integer from 1 to 9 are prepared by reacting a 1,1-bis (hydrocarbyl peroxy) cycloalkane with cycloaliphatic ketones in the presence of a molybdenum containing catalyst. The 1,1-bis (hydrocarbyl peroxy) cycloalkane can be prepared in situ from an organic hydroperoxide and a cycloalkanone. The compounds have utility as solvents and certain specific members of the class have utility as intermediates to adipic acid by further oxidation or as an intermediate to 2-t-butoxyphenol by known dehydrogenation methods.