USE OF CHEMICAL REACTION TO SEPARATE ETHYLENE FROM ETHANE IN ETHANE-BASED PROCESSES TO PRODUCE ACETIC ACID

摘要

Described herein is a process in which acetic acid is produced by ethaneoxidation. One byproduct of the ethane oxidation is ethylene. High ethylenecontent in the recycle gas stream will lead to poor efficiencies and higherlosses to the COx byproduct in the acetic acid reactor. In fact, ethylene inthe recycle feed competes with the ethane for the limited amount of oxygenfeed, resulting in higher inefficiencies to carbon oxides than straight ethaneoxidation. Ethylene is removed in this process by a further oxidation reactionat a temperature low enough such that ethane is not reactive, but the ethyleneis converted to acetic acid. Either the ethane oxidation reactor effluent or aportion or all of the recycle stream to the ethane oxidation reactor, or anycombination of the same, can be processed in this manner to reduce theethylene content of those streams.