ENHANCED DISTILLATION OF CYCLOHEXANOL FROM PHENOL WITH ADDITIONAL CYCLOHEXANONE FEED

摘要

ENHANCED DISTILLATION OF CYCLOHEXANOL FROM PHENOL WITH ADDITIONAL CYCLOHEXANONE FEED A process in which a mixture including phenol, cyclohexanone and cyclohexanol is fed to a point intermediate the top and bottom of a distillation column, an overhead stream comprising cyclohexanone and cyclohexanol is withdrawn from a point adjacent the top of the column and a bottoms stream comprising phenol is withdrawn from adjacent the bottom of the column. By feeding additional cyclohexanone to a point below where the mixture is fed, the cyclohexanone content of the bottoms is reduced. The process is useful in separating chemicals used in producing cyclohexanone from phenol for manufacturing caprolactam, a polyamide monomer, or for other purposes.