摘要:
Disclosed are processes for industrially advantageously producing at a good yield respectively, a hydrogenated aromatic polycarboxylic acid and an acid anhydride thereof each having a high purity. The present invention provides processes for producing a hydrogenated aromatic polycarboxylic acid by (1) hydrogenating an aromatic polycarboxylic acid at a hydrogen partial pressure of 1 MPa or more by a batch system in the presence of a catalyst containing rhodium and palladium in a proportion of 0.5 to 10 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of the aromatic polycarboxylic acid and by (2) feeding an aromatic polycarboxylic acid to a filling bed of a catalyst containing rhodium and palladium at a WHSV of 1 to 100 h -1 to hydrogenate it at a hydrogen partial pressure of 1 MPa or more by a continuous flow system, and a process for producing a hydrogenated aromatic polycarboxylic anhydride by subjecting the hydrogenated aromatic polycarboxylic acid obtained by the processes described above to dehydration reaction with acetic anhydride of 0.64 to 5.7 times mole based on a carboxyl group of the hydrogenated aromatic polycarboxylic acid.