Patent ID: 9656940
Date: 2017-05-23
CPC Classifications: B01D,C07C

Claim:
1. A process for the recovery of acetic acid, comprising: extracting acetic acid from an aqueous solution by liquid/liquid extraction of the aqueous solution with a low-boiling-point solvent to form an extract, the low-boiling-point solvent having a boiling point lower than acetic acid, and the extract comprises at least acetic acid, the low-boiling-point solvent, water, and high-boiling-point compounds; and distilling the extract from the extracting step in a dividing-wall column or in a Petlyuk column to obtain: (i) a top product comprising the low-boiling-point solvent and optionally water; (ii) at least one intermediate fraction comprising from 50% to 100% by weight of acetic acid and optionally water; and (iii) a bottom product comprising high-boiling compounds or a mixture of high-boiling compounds and acetic acid.