Abstract: A method and apparatus for recovering HF catalyst from an alkylation unit acid stream containing acid soluble oil wherein a bottoms stream, which contains HF, acid soluble oils and a minor quantity of water, from an HF rerun column are processed. The bottoms mixture is cooled in a heat exchanger to a temperature sufficiently low so as to effect separation of HF from the acid soluble oil with the mixture then being passed to a separating vessel to allow the separation of the HF from the acid soluble oil due to the reduced mutual solubility. A gradient of HF concentration is effected within the separation vessel wherein an HF-rich acid soluble oil mixture is withdrawn as a stream separate from a substantially HF-free acid soluble oil portion which is also recovered as a separate stream.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for removing contaminants from water having solid contaminants dissolved therein. Contaminated water flows across a grid and into a storage tank. The grid utilizes solar energy to heat that water to a predetermined temperature. A heat transfer structure which is dome-shaped and receives water from the storage tank and a preheater means utilizing solar energy heats the water to a further predetermined temperature. An evaporator means receives the heated water and exposes it to a vacuum condition so that the temperature of the water is above the saturation temperature. The water is thus vaporized, and solid contaminants dissolved therein are separated therefrom. The solids are deposited on a plurality of moving belts and are then moved into a solids removal system. The solids removal system comprises a plurality of trap door pairs upon which the solids are deposited and which are sequentially opened so that the vacuum conditions existing in the evaporator are not disturbed.

Abstract: A process for purifying crude acrylic acid characterized in that high-purity purified acrylic acid containing little or no low boiling aldehydes is obtained by rectifying a crude acrylic acid consisting essentially of acrylic acid and containing low boiling substances such as acetaldehyde, acrolein, water and acetic acid and/or high boiling substances such as maleic acid, phenol, benzaldehyde and acrylic acid dimer, thereby removing said low boiling substances and then high boiling ones, and then stripping trace amounts of remaining low boiling aldehydes with an inert gas such as nitrogen or air at a liquid to gas molar ratio of 2 to 20.

Abstract: This invention describes a method for thermally stabilizing sterols to permit economic recovery of the sterols present in a sterol containing source material, said sterol containing source material having a Friedel-Crafts Catalyst present therein is rapidly distilled to recover a sterol as distillate.

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: Tall oil containing anthraquinone is fractionally distilled for producing the tall oil heads cut enriched in said anthraquinone.

Abstract: Liquid purifying apparatus in which an infeed chamber, an evaporator chamber and a condenser chamber are arranged in that order along a flow path. A first inflatable bag is interposed across the flow path between the infeed chamber and the evaporator chamber, and a second inflatable bag is interposed across the flow path between the evaporator chamber and the condenser chamber. These bags are respectively located substantially entirely in the evaporator and condenser chambers, and the bags each comprise a flexible layer of highly absorbent fibrous material including a plurality of plies. The liquid to be purified is introduced into the infeed chamber, and it flows into the evaporator chamber to a level such that a portion of the first bag is immersed in the liquid. The liquid spreads by immersion and capillary action over substantially all of the fibers in the first bag to form thin liquid films along the individual fibers.

Abstract: Alkane dicarboxylic acids of at least 4 carbon atoms particularly the mixture of succinic, glutaric and adipic acids obtained as byproduct in the manufacture of adipic acid are purified by co-distillation with an alkylbenzene having an atmospheric pressure boiling point of 300.degree. to 350.degree. C. especially dodecylbenzene.

Abstract: In order to prevent corrosion of the apparatus in extraction and extractive distillation processes where N-substituted morpholine is employed as the selective solvent an additive is added to the solvent which additive consists of (a) phosphoric acid, (b) a salt thereof, (c) a vanadium compound, (d) a molybdenum compound or (e) a mixture of two or more of these compounds, the addition being effected in an amount of about 0.005 to 0.02% by weight of the morpholine solvent.

Abstract: Apparatus and processes are disclosed for converting sensitive organic compounds such as acrolein, methacrolein, acrylic acid and methacrylic acid from liquid to vapor in admixture with a gas stream at super-atmospheric pressures with minimum decomposition and substantially without polymer formation. The acrolein and methacrolein partial pressures being up to super-atmospheric and those of acrylic and methacrylic acids up to about an atmosphere.An apparatus and a process are also disclosed for transferring a sensitive organic material in an energy-efficient manner from a low-pressure, high-temperature gas-vapor stream to a solvent for the sensitive material, and then to another gas stream at increased pressure.

Abstract: The instant invention is directed to a process for the production of diisocyanatodiphenyl methane isomers having an adjusted content of chlorine compounds comprising:(a) separating diisocyanatodiphenyl methane isomers from a polyisocyanate mixture of the diphenyl methane series in a first distillation stage,(b) subjecting said separated isomers to a second distillation stage using a recycle ratio of from 0.1 to 10 and wherein from 0.5 to 10% by weight of the feed into said second distillation stage is run off as the sump product,(c) subjecting the head product of said second distillation stage to a third distillation stage whereby readily volatile impurities are freed therefrom, and(d) working up the sump product of said third distillation stage to obtain purified 4,4'-diisocyanatodiphenyl methane and, optionally, purified 2,4'-diisocyanatodiphenyl methane.

Abstract: A distilled water apparatus which comprises in nested vapor-sealed arrangement, a bottom raw water tank, a storage tank and a cooling and condensing tank. The storage tank has an outer annular storage compartment surrounding a vertical vapor passage and can be equipped with a basket for holding coffee or the like so that the device acts as a self-contained distilled water coffee maker.

Abstract: An extractive distillation process for separating one or more members of the group consisting of alkanols, alkanones, cycloalkanols and/or cycloalkanones from mixtures with phenol and/or cresol. One or more members of the group consisting of alkylated or unmodified cycloalkyl or aryl-derivatives of cyclohexanone or cyclohexanol having up to about 22 carbon atoms are employed as extractive solvent.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for high volume distillation of impure liquid comprises evaporating the impure liquid in an evaporator to form a vapor at a temperature above the freezing point and below the boiling point of said liquid at atmospheric pressure and at a pressure not exceeding a pressure corresponding to the evaporation temperature under saturated conditions; compressing the vapor; passing a portion of the compressed vapor through an expansion engine to do work upon and motivate the engine and to produce shaft energy, whereby the vapor expands and cools; bypassing the expansion engine with the remainder of the compressed vapor and admixing the remainder directly with the expanded vapor from the expansion engine in a mixing chamber; adding work to the expansion engine to supplement the work done by the vapor expanding therethrough to make up for work lost when the remainder of the compressed vapor bypassed the expansion engine and for other work lost; cooling the admixed vapor in heat transfer relation wi

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: A method for separating a feedstock comprising hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan, methanol, and water in which a sufficient amount of water is injected into the fractionating column above the feedstock inlet to water wash the organic phase, decanting water and methanol from a tray below the feedstock inlet so that the stream comprising hydrogen sulfide and a minimum of water can be removed overhead and a stream comprising methyl mercaptan and a minimum of water can be removed as bottoms.

Abstract: A method and closed system for high volume distillation of impure liquids comprises evaporating the impure liquid in an evaporator to form a vapor at a temperature above the freezing point and below the critical point, preferably the boiling point, of the liquid at ambient pressure and at a pressure not exceeding a pressure corresponding to the evaporation temperature under saturated conditions; compressing the vapor in compression means which preferably has a compression ratio variable in the range 1.

Abstract: An apparatus for reducing the vinyl chloride monomer content of polyvinyl chloride resins suspended as a slurry in an aqueous medium. The polyvinyl chloride-water slurry as produced in a conventional suspension resin autoclave, or a resin-water slurry prepared subsequent to suspension polymerization, is placed in a vessel and heated to a suitable temperature for removal of vinyl chloride monomer from the resin. In this operation, the polyvinyl chloride-water slurry is agitated in a vessel and steam is injected directly into the slurry to rapidly heat the slurry up to a minimum temperature of at least about 180.degree. F. The slurry is cooled immediately, or optionally it can be maintained for a period of time at the selected maximum temperature and then rapidly cooled by applying vacuum to the vessel and condensing the vapor phase removed from the vessel. Dried polyvinyl chloride resin produced by this process has been found to have a vinyl chloride monomer content below a detectable limit of 0.5 ppm.

Abstract: Method and apparatus are disclosed for the automatic adjustment of the fractionation column pressure in a fractionator system which employs total condensation of overhead vapor and a liquid full reflux accumulator to thus float the column pressure above minimum column pressure. The set point of a pressure controller, which manipulates the overhead product control valve to adjust column pressure, is automatically adjusted in response to a desired offset of condensate subcooling from the overhead bubble point temperature which is repeatedly automatically calculated in response to analysis of the overhead product composition and pressure. Appropriate limits and overrides are also disclosed to prevent sudden changes in column pressure which might upset system operation.