Patent ID: 9416088
Filing Date: 2016-08-16
CPC Classification: B01D,C07C

Claim Text:
1. A process for producing acetic acid comprising: separating, in a flash vessel, a reaction medium formed in a reactor to form a liquid recycle comprising a catalyst-containing solution and a vapor product stream; distilling the vapor product stream in a first column to obtain a side stream and a first low-boiling overhead vapor stream, wherein the side stream comprises water in an amount from 1 to 3 wt. %; condensing the first low-boiling overhead vapor stream and biphasically separating the condensed stream to form a heavy liquid phase and a light liquid phase, and recycling a portion of the light liquid phase to the reactor; distilling the side stream in a second column to obtain a purified acetic acid product and a second low-boiling overhead vapor stream; condensing the second low-boiling overhead vapor stream to obtain an aqueous recycle stream, comprising water in an amount from 50 to 90 wt. %; and recycling the aqueous recycle stream to the reactor, wherein the recycle ratio of the mass flow of the portion of the light liquid phase recycled to the reactor to the mass flow of the aqueous recycle stream recycled to the reactor is less than or equal to 2.