Patent ID: 7750194

Claim:
A process for preparing an alkanol (I) from its corresponding alkane (II), comprising: A) providing a starting gas stream (a) comprising said alkane (II); B) feeding said starting gas stream (a) into a dehydrogenation zone and dehydrogenating said alkane (II) to its correspending alkene (III) to obtain a product gas stream (b) comprising said alkene (III), unconverted alkane (II), steam, hydrogen, and low boilers, and optionally high boilers; C) compressing said product gas stream (b) and optionally separating said product gas stream (b) into an aqueous phase (c 1 ), a phase (c 2 ) comprising said alkene (III) and said alkane (II), and optionally comprising high boilers, and a gas phase (c 3 ) comprising hydrogen and low boilers; D) reacting said product gas stream (b) or said phase (c 2 ) with an organic acid (IV) in an esterification zone to obtain a product mixture (d) comprising the corresponding alkyl ester (V) of said organic acid (IV) and said unconverted alkane (II); E) removing from said product mixture (d) a gas stream (e 1 ), which comprises said alkane (II) and is optionally recycled into said dehydrogenation zone, and a product mixture (e 2 ) comprising said alkyl ester (V); F) reacting said product mixture (e 2 ) with water in an ester hydrolysis zone to give a product mixture (f) comprising said alkanol (I) and said organic acid (IV); G) removing said alkanol (I) and said organic acid (IV) from said product mixture (f) and optionally recycling said organic acid (IV) into said esterification zone; wherein said alkanol (I) is selected from the group consisting of isopropanol and 2-butanol; wherein when said alkanol (I) is isopropanol, its corresponding alkane (II) is propane and when said alkanol (I) is 2-butanol, its corresponding alkane (II) is n-butane; and wherein when said alkane (II) is propane, its corresponding alkene (III) is propene and when said alkane is n-butane, its corresponding alkene (III) are butenes.