Patent ID: 6156947
Filing Date: 2000-12-05
Classification: C07C,Y02P

Abstract:
A process for the production of butene-1 from a feedstream comprising butene-1, butene-2, isobutylene, butadiene, and pentenes, comprising the following steps:a) passing the feedstream and an alcohol stream at effective etherification and separation conditions to a catalytic distillation column having an upper catalytic zone and a lower catalytic zone and contacting at least a portion of the feedstream in the presence of hydrogen at effective selective hydrotreating and isomerization conditions in the lower catalytic zone containing a selective hydrogenation catalyst and an isomerization catalyst for converting the butadiene to additional amounts of butene-1 and butene-2 and for the isomerization of butene-2 to butene-1 to produce an additional amount of butene-1 and to produce a dimer component and recovering the dimer component in a bottom product stream;b) contacting the remaining portion of the feedstream in the upper catalytic zone containing an etherification catalyst and therein etherifying the isobutylene with the alcohol stream to produce a tertiary alkyl ether;c) recovering a bottom product stream from the catalytic distillation column comprising pentenes, said dimer, and tertiary alkyl ether;d) recovering a top product stream from the catalytic distillation column comprising hydrogen;e) withdrawing a side draw stream at a point above the upper catalytic zone, said side draw stream comprising the alcohol and butene-1; and,f) passing the side draw stream to an alcohol recovery zone to provide a butene-1 product stream and an oxygenate stream and returning at least a portion of the oxygenate stream to step (a) to provide at least a portion of the alcohol stream.