Abstract: Ethylene oxide is extracted from aqueous solutions by carbon dioxide under (near) super-critical conditions and thereafter recovered by distillation at sub-critical conditions. Improved distillation is obtained by adding to the carbon dixoide a gas (or gases) which adjust the critical temperature of the gas mixture of the top of the distillation column within the range of about 32.degree. C. to about 75.degree. C. Preferred gases are the saturated hydrocarbons, particularly propane, n-butane, isobutane and pentane.

Abstract: Ethylene oxide is recovered from aqueous solutions by extracting with carbon dioxide in the near-critical or super-critical state, thereby selectively removing the ethylene oxide from water, and thereafter recovering ethylene oxide from the carbon dioxide by distillation or other suitable means.

Abstract: The energy requirements of a solution rubber process are significantly improved by employing solvent which has been removed in subsequent process steps.The invention concerns the separation treatment of the solvents and the polymer solutions produced by solution polymerization. In one embodiment a polymer solution is flashed to remove solvent vapor overhead and a concentrated polymer solution is removed as bottoms. The flashed solvent vapor is divided into at least two streams. A first stream is used as a stripping vapor medium in a zone for stripping a wet solvent to recover a wet solvent vapor overhead from the stripping zone and a dry solvent liquid as bottoms; the second flashed solvent vapor stream is used to preheat the wet solvent feed to the stripping zone by indirect contact heat exchange; a third portion of said solvent vapor can be combined with the second portion downstream of the heat exchange step, and the combined stream can be condensed.

Abstract: A process for purifying 1,2-butylene oxide which comprises extractive distillation of crude butylene oxide with an added solvent comprising an acyclic, paraffinic hydrocarbon having from 7 to 9 carbon atoms.

Abstract: A process for removing water from butylene oxides which comprises liquid extraction of crude butylene oxides with a solvent comprising acyclic, paraffinic hydrocarbons having from 7 to 9 carbon atoms per molecule.

Abstract: This invention provides an improved process for the separation and recovery of byproducts associated with the isolation of C.sub.4 -C.sub.6 dicarboxylic acids contained in a waste byproduct stream derived from an adipic acid manufacturing operation involving nitric acid oxidation of a cyclohexanone/cyclohexanol feedstream.The main byproducts which are recovered are high purity dimethyl succinate, dimethyl glutarate and dimethyl adipate.

Abstract: Process for separating water from a gas mixture, obtained in the manufacture of vinyl acetate by reacting ethylene with acetic acid and oxygen in contact with catalysts containing palladium or palladium compounds in the gaseous phase said gas mixture consisting essentially of acetic acid, vinyl acetate, water, carbon dioxide and ethylene, wherein(a) the gas mixture leaving the reaction zone is condensed to give a condensate containing the major portion of acetic acid, vinyl acetate and water and(b) an acetic acid solution containing the residual amount of vinyl acetate and water being prepared by absorption of the non-condensed gas in acetic acid, is characterized in that(c) the condensate obtained in step (a) and the solution obtained in step (b) are introduced separately from each other into the same distillation column, the feeding point of the condensate being above the feeding point of the solution, the water is distilled off at the head of said column as azeotrope together with the vinyl acetate and(d)

Abstract: Process and apparatus for extracting an organic liquid from an organic liquid solute/solvent mixture. The mixture is contacted with a fluid extractant which is at a temperature and pressure to render the extractant a solvent for the solute but not for the solvent. The resulting fluid extract of the solute is then depressurized to give a still feed which is distilled to form still overhead vapors and liquid still bottoms. The enthalpy required to effect this distillation is provided by compressing the still overhead vapors to heat them and indirectly to heat the still feed. The process is particularly suitable for separating mixtures which form azeotropes, e.g., oxygenated hydrocarbon/water mixtures. The energy required in this process is much less than that required to separate such mixtures by conventional distillation techniques.

Abstract: A method for separating a mixture of reaction products produced in the catalytic etherification of a lower isoolefin with methanol wherein said reaction product comprises a mixture of ether, methanol, unreacted hydrocarbon and tertiary alcohol which comprises adding water to said reaction product to form a hydrocarbon phase containing said ether and an aqueous phase containing methanol and a tertiary alcohol, separating said hydrocarbon phase to recover a methyltertiary alkyl ether, introducing said alcohol-containing aqueous phase into a distillation column to separate a methanol fraction overhead, withdrawing a side stream rich in tertiary alcohol from said distillation column, stripping this side stream in a stripping column to separate a second methanol fraction overhead and a tertiary alcohol bottoms fraction and recycling the methanol overhead fraction from the stripping column to the upper part of the distillation column and recycling the overhead methanol fraction from the distillation column to the f

Abstract: A multi-stage evaporator is used to remove water from the extracted distillation or stripper tower bottoms recycled as quench liquid to the quench tower of an acrylonitrile purification and recovery system. This results in a significant decrease in the amount of waste quench tower bottoms produced by the system. Use of a multi-effect evaporator represents a significant energy savings as compared with other techniques for decreasing the water content of the recycle stream.

Abstract: A process for the continuous separation of methanol and water from a feed mixture containing predominantly tetrahydrofuran admixed with water, methanol and small amounts of additional compounds, in a rectifying apparatus having at last two rectifying columns, of which two are operated at different pressures which involves feeding the raw material into a first column operated under lower pressure, and introducing the distillate from the column operated under a lower pressure to a second column operated under a higher pressure, while a product stream from the second column operated under a higher pressure is reintroduced into the first column operated under a lower pressure.

Abstract: Crude liquid polyether-polyols containing an alkaline catalyst are purified by the steps of:neutralizing said crude liquid polyether-polyol with a mineral acid having a dissociation constant of greater than 10.sup.-3 at 25.degree. C.distilling off water from said liquid, and filtering the same. The improvement resides in the step of adding a hydrate of a metal salt of said mineral acid to the liquid polyether-polyol at a stage before the distillation step for promoting the crystal growth of a salt formed from said alkaline catalyst by the neutralization.

Abstract: In a process of preparing triaryl phosphates by direct esterification which comprisesA. Reaction Steps:The steps of(a) Reacting a hydroxyaryl with phosphoric acid or equivalent to form an aryl phosphate and water(b) Removing the water by entrainment by means of hydroxyaryl vapor, and(c) Condensing the water-containing entraining vapor, andB. Dehydration Step:The step of separating the water from the water-containing entraining vapor by distillation, andC. Recycling Steps:The steps of(a) Evaporating the dry hydroxyaryl liquid and(b) Using its vapor as the entraining vapor in step (A, b).the improvement which comprisesI. Carrying out the Reaction Steps A at essentially higher pressure than the Dehydration Step B, andII. Using all, or part of, the water-containing hydroxyaryl vapor from Step (A, b) as the heating medium in Step B.

Abstract: A method of drying quaternary ammonium compounds for use as additives in the anhydrous anionic polymerization of 2-pyrrolidone is disclosed.The method consists of dissolving or suspending the quaternary ammonium compound in 2-pyrrolidone and distilling over, under reduced pressure, a portion of the 2-pyrrolidone whereby the water is removed.

Abstract: Esters are treated with alkali metal borohydride to produce alcohols. Substantially constant boiling admixtures of: methanol/methyl heptafluorobutyrate, water/1,1-dihydroheptafluorobutanol, and water/methyl heptafluorobutyrate are described.

Abstract: Water is separated by distillation from organic multiple component mixtures containing at least one component partly miscible with water. The component miscible with water is distilled azeotropically with the water contained in the mixture, the distillate is separated into water and a zeotrope forming agent and the latter is recycled to the distilling column. In the recycling process, one part of the azeotrope forming agent is conducted to the top of the column and the other part is fed into the column at the feed mixture inlet or at a location thereunder.

Abstract: A dehydrating purification process for a fermentation product, which comprises adding at least one polyhydric alcohol represented by the formulae (III) or (IV), ##STR1## wherein R.sub.8 represents a hydrogen atom or a methyl group, R.sub.9 represents a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms, and m and n represent integers from 1 to 6, to hydrated Sophorolipid or a secondary derivative thereof which is a fermentation product of Torulopsis bombicola, and distilling off water with heating under reduced pressure.

Abstract: A process for reducing the chemical oxygen demand of water removed from a mixture of crude tetrahydrofuran and water, said process comprising contacting said mixture in the vapor phase with a dilute sodium hydroxide solution, then optionally contacting the tetrahydrofuran-water mixture after condensation with a concentrated sodium hydroxide solution and separating water from the thus treated mixture, said water having reduced chemical oxygen demand over water that is removed from said mixture merely by distillation.

Abstract: A process for dehydrating an essentially one-phase wet solvent stream obtained in a solvent dewaxing-solvent deoiling process, which solvent stream contains at least 60% toluene with the balance being water and methyl ethyl ketone (hereinafter MEK), is dehydrated by (a) fractionally distilling to produce a bottom fraction of anhydrous MEK-toluene solvent and an overhead fraction containing all the water originally present in the wet solvent stream; (b) condensing and separating said overhead fraction into a toluene-containing, water-lean phase, which is used as reflux in step (a), and a toluene-free, MEK-containing, water-rich phase; (c) extracting into a hydrocarbon stream some MEK from said water-rich phase and from the condensed azeotropic mixture recycled from step (g) hereinafter; (d) recovering from step (c) a second water-rich stream, which water-rich stream contains the MEK not extracted into said hydrocarbon stream; (e) azeotropically distilling said second water-rich stream so as to obtain water as

Abstract: The recovery of dimethylacylamides from solutions which are formed during the production of fibres is particularly economical if the solution is concentrated in a separating column to produce a sump product having a DMA content of 30 to 90% at pressures of more than 300 Torr, using the evaporation heat of the head product for heating the column, with the aid of a compressor and then separating the sump product which is concentrated in DMA by distillation.

Abstract: A process is described for separating salt (sodium chloride) from the polyglyceride-containing organic phase of the heavy ends waste or glycerine foots still bottoms obtained in conventional manufacture of glycerine via hydrolysis of epichlorohydrin or glycerol dichlorohydrins. In this process, the heavy ends wastes made up primarily of salt and polyclycerides and containing less than about 6% by weight water are treated at elevated temperatures with sufficient amounts of n-butanol to bring about precipitation of the salt followed by separation of the n-butanol-containing liquid phase substantially free of salt from the precipitated salt, cooling of the separated liquid phase to a temperature at which the n-butanol phase separates from the substantially salt-free polyglyceride phase without further salt precipitation and recovery of the n-butanol from the phase-separated polyglyceride phase.

Abstract: The invention relates to a process for the partial separation of water from gas mixtures formed in the manufacture of vinyl acetate by reaction of ethylene with acetic acid and oxygen in the gaseous phase and in the presence of catalysts. In a "predehydration column", more than half of the water formed in the reaction is eliminated without requiring energy feed. The mixture obtained which is relatively poor in water is worked up according to known methods.

Abstract: The formaldehyde hydrazone of UDMH can be removed from an aqueous solution f UDMH by codistillation with a hydrocarbon or other solvent which is inert to both acidic or basis mediums. The solvent can then be recovered from the hydrazone solution by washing with an acid solution and the solvent can be reused.

Abstract: A process for recovering substantially dry methyl chloride from a stream of wet methyl chloride by distilling the wet methyl chloride in the presence of at least 10 molar % hydrogen chloride based on the hydrogen chloride, methyl chloride and water being distilled. The distillation is carried out under super atmospheric pressure and a temperature to produce an aqueous hydrochloric acid of less than 36 wt %, and preferably under such super atmospheric pressure and sufficient temperature to produce an azeotropic hydrochloric acid containing a low concentration of hydrogen chloride. Increasing pressures allows increasing temperatures in the bottoms which form azeotropes of lower concentration hydrochloric acid. The resulting overhead of such a distillation, methyl chloride-hydrogen chloride, will contain less than about 400 molar ppm water. When the distillation is carried out in the presence of about 12 to 25 molar % hydrogen chloride, the overhead will contain between about 100 to 400 molar ppm water.

Abstract: Process for the production of gaseous hydrogen chloride by extraction of dilute aqueous hydrochloric acid with amines.(a) The aqueous hydrochloric acid is extracted with an amine or with a mixture of an amine and an inert organic solvent which is immiscible with water and has a lower boiling point than the amine employed, the amines utilized being tertiary alkyl amines, tertiary aryl dialkyl amines, secondary arylalkyl amines, primary alkylaryl amines, or mixtures thereof, which contain 14-32 carbon atoms in the nitrogen-bound side chains, and among these at most one nitrogen-bound methyl group and at least one aliphatic residue containing at least 6 carbon atoms, and wherein the acid constant K.sub.a of the amine is smaller than 10.sup.-3.(b) An inert, water-immiscible organic solvent which has a lower boiling point than the amine employed is added to the extract, unless the solvent has already been added in stage (a).

Abstract: A process for recovering maximum amounts of styrene from hydrocarbon fractions produced by thermal cracking of hydrocarbons. The cracked products are subjected to quench cooling and in a separating column separated into a bottom fraction comprised predominantly of hydrocarbons with 9 and more carbon atoms and into a top fraction comprised predominantly of hydrocarbons having less than 9 carbon atoms. The top fraction is fed to a cooling and separating device wherein a cracked gasoline fraction is recovered from which fraction styrene is recovered by fractionation. The cracked gasoline fraction from the separating device can be combined with the hydrocarbon condensates from the first and second compressor stages of a multistage compressor in which the vaporous fraction from the cooling and separating device is compressed.

Abstract: The invention relates to an improved process for removing water, under elevated temperature, from aqueous gel of water soluble polymer, such as polymer or copolymer of acrylamide and/or quaternary ammonium salts of dialkylaminoamlkylmethacrylate, to prevent from the deterioration of polymer properties. The process is accomplished by addition of polyhydric phenols, benzoquinones or derivatives thereof prior to removal of water.

Abstract: A process for the continuous preparation of organic solutions of percarboxylic acids by reaction of an aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide with the corresponding carboxylic acid in the presence of an acid, water-soluble catalyst which boils above 160.degree. C., extraction of the percarboxylic acid from the resulting reaction mixture using an organic solvent which is immiscible with water, reconcentration of the raffinate, which essentially contains hydrogen peroxide and the acid catalyst, by distilling off water in a distillation column and recycle of the raffinate, concentrated in this way, into the reaction with the carboxylic acid. The raffinate is divided into two partial streams in a ratio of 1 to 25:1.

Abstract: Process for the continuous preparation of organic solutions of percarboxylic acids by reaction of aqueous hydrogen peroxide with the corresponding carboxylic acid in the presence of an acid, water-soluble catalyst, extraction of the resulting reaction mixture with an organic solvent and recycle of the raffinate, containing hydrogen peroxide, after reconcentration by the removal of water by distillation into the reaction. The raffinate is fed, together with the whole of that amount of hydrogen peroxide which essentially to the consumption of hydrogen peroxide in the reaction or with a part thereof, into the distillation for the removal of water. The amount of water which essentially corresponds to the sum of the water of reaction formed during the reaction and the water introduced into the process with the feed products is distilled off under reduced pressure. The sump product, thus obtainable, from the distillation is recycled into the reaction.

Abstract: N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone is recovered from the raffinate and extract phases produced by its use in hydrocarbon extraction processes, particularly lube oil extraction, through the use of flash evaporation and/or distillation followed by gas stripping. Water buildup in the recovered solvent is prevented by employing solvent dehydration means in the solvent recovery line after gas stripping. Proper control of process parameters enables the dehydration means to remove excess water without requiring additional heat input to the process.

Abstract: A fractional distillation method of separating diacetoxybutene isomers from a reaction mixture produced from the reaction of butadiene, acetic acid and molecular oxygen comprises employing a series of at least two distillation towers, one of said towers being used for distillation of water and acetic acid under a pressure of 30 - 250 Torr and a tower bottom temperature of 190.degree. - 120.degree. C and the other being used for separation of high boiling point materials under a pressure of 2 - 100 Torr and a tower bottom temperature of 190.degree. - 120.degree. C, the temperature of all tower bottoms being from 190.degree. - 120.degree. C.

Abstract: A two-stage evaporative method for recovering polymerizable 2-pyrrolidone from alkaline aqueous solutions such as those obtained by washing the catalyst from an incompletely reacted polypyrrolidone polymerizate, includes the steps of neutralizing the base with mineral acid, removing most of the water in an initial reduced pressure evaporation and recovering the pyrrolidone from a salt/pyrrolidone slurry by vaporization under reduced pressure.

Abstract: A process is provided for the removal of water from a mixture of ethylene diamine and water and for the preparation of ethylene diamine having a water content below the azeotropic equilibrium water content between ethylene diamine and water, by distilling the mixture in the presence of a distillation adjuvant comprising one or more compounds selected from the group consisting of piperazine, diethylene, triamine, hydroxethyl ethylene diamine, and aminoethyl piperazine. The adjuvant can be removed later if desired.

Abstract: Dioxane is produced by reaction of ethylene glycol or a polyethylene glycol using an acid catalyst. The reaction product containing dioxane, water and byproducts is subjected to extractive distillation with a high-boiling agent which is miscible with water.

Abstract: An improved method for separating para-dialkylbenzene monohydroperoxide from crude solid para-dialkylbenzene dihydroperoxide which comprises treating the solid dihydroperoxide with a liquid hydrocarbon to form a mixture, heating the mixture to a temperature of at least about 60.degree. C., cooling the mixture to below about 30.degree. C. and filtering or otherwise physically separating the solid dihydroperoxide.

Abstract: Separation by distillation and formation of immiscible liquid phases of nearly equal densities which comprises distilling a mixture containing the same in the presence of an added liquid of substantially different density, preferentially soluble in a recycle to the distillation zone and having a volatility under conditions of distillation such that it will vaporize preferentially to a liquid desired to be retained in the distillation zone to be removed as bottoms therefrom, e.g., toluene added to produce gravity separation of a heavy water-rich phase and a light phase containing phenol, cyclohexanone and cyclohexylbenzene and the added toluene which is used as reflux to the drying column in the overall process in which cyclohexanone and phenol are produced from cyclohexylbenzene.

Abstract: A water distillation unit is disclosed herein. The unit preferably comprises an upper boiler container and a lower condensation container which are rigidly maintained in spaced apart relationship by a molded coupling member containing a plurality of water passageways and fittings. The coupling member is integral with the condensation container and is removably and threadably attached to the upper boiler container so that same may be easily removed when desired for cleaning. The boiler container receives raw liquid which is vaporized by an interiorly disposed heater element. The condensation container houses a condenser tube which receives steam from the boiler container and conducts distillate exteriorly of the apparatus. To improve thermal efficiency the condenser tube is cooled by raw liquid which is routed through the condensing container.

Abstract: An improved process for the production of aliphatic nitriles having two to six carbon atoms by the reaction of an aliphatic carboxylic acid with ammonia in the presence of a catalyst followed by effluent distillation. The improvement lies in the addition of a portion of the aliphatic carboxylic acid after the reactor but before distillation whereby ammonium carboxylate formed in the reaction and dissociated by distillation is reformed to the carboxylate thus preventing the escape of dissociated ammonia and whereby the aliphatic carboxylic acid portion is recycled to the reaction.