PROCESS FOR SEPARATING PHENOL AND ACETONE FROM PHENOL-CUMENE-ALPHA-METHYL STYRENE TERNARY AZEOTROPE

摘要

The present invention relates to a process for separating the phenol and acetone in the phenol-cumene-alpha-methyl styrene ternary azeotrope, which consists in that the ternary azeotrope containing 2% acetone, is supplied into an azeotrope fractionating column, at a pressure close to the atmospheric pressure and at a temperature of 90...105 C, by using as entraining agent water, in a 1/1 volumetric ratio in relation to the supply, and at the column base, there is separated an aqueous phenol solution with small quantities of hydrocarbons, and at the top, there is separated acetone and a water-hydrocarbons heteroazeotrope consisting of cumene and alpha-methyl styrene, with traces of phenol under 100 ppm, which, after condensation and cooling, is separated into two liquid phases, the lower liquid phase being partially recirculated in one of the columns in the separation train, and the hydrocarbons upper phase being recirculated in the oxidation reactor of the phenol installation, after the alpha-methyl styrene hydrogenation.