Patent ID: 7820866

Claim:
A process reaction system for manufacturing polyphenol at polyphenol manufacturing conditions comprising a phenolic compound/mother liquor stream, a carbonyl compound stream, a condensation reactor comprising an acid catalyst and maintained under polyphenol manufacturing conditions, a condensation reactor effluent stream to a dehydration column, a dehydration column, a dehydration column overhead stream under vacuum created by a downstream first pump to a promoter absorber column, a dehydration column side draw stream, a dehydration column bottoms stream, a promoter absorber column, a vent stream from the promoter absorber column, a vapor recirculation stream from the promoter absorber column to the dehydration column overhead stream upstream of the first pump, a promoter absorber column bottoms stream, a first phenolic compound stream, a second phenolic compound stream to the liquid ring inlet port of the first pump and a condensation reactor feed stream comprising the phenolic compound/mother liquor stream, the carbonyl compound stream and the promoter absorber column bottoms stream to the condensation reactor comprising an acid catalyst, said process reaction system comprising a phenolic compound reactant, a carbonyl compound reactant and bismethylthiopropane catalyst promoter composition, said bismethylthiopropane catalyst promoter composition being added to said process reaction system in at least one of (a) the dehydration column overhead stream downstream of the dehydration column, downstream of the point at which the vapor recirculation stream intersects the dehydration column overhead stream and upstream of the first pump creating a vacuum in said dehydration column overhead stream, (aa) the dehydration column overhead stream downstream of the dehydration column, upstream of the point at which the vapor recirculation stream intersects the dehydration column overhead stream and upstream of the first pump creating a vacuum in said dehydration column overhead stream, (b) the second phenolic compound stream to the liquid ring inlet port of the first pump creating a vacuum on said dehydration column, (c) the promoter absorber column, (d) the carbonyl compound stream upstream of the junction with the promoter absorber column bottoms stream, (e) the promoter absorber column bottoms stream upstream of the junction with the carbonyl compound stream or (f) the phenolic compound/mother liquor stream.