Patent ID: 7498471

Claim:
A cumene generation process using a dividing wall fractionation zone, said process comprising: contacting, in an alkylation zone, at least propylene, benzene, and a first benzene recycle stream with an alkylation catalyst under alkylation conditions to convert at least a portion of the propylene and benzene into cumene and form an alkylation zone effluent comprising benzene and cumene; contacting, in a transalkylation zone, a polyisopropylbenzene-rich recycle stream comprising at least polyisopropylbenzene and a second benzene recycle stream comprising at least benzene with a transalkylation catalyst under transalkylation conditions to convert at least a portion of the polyisopropylbenzene and benzene into cumene and form a transalkylation zone effluent comprising benzene and cumene; passing the alkylation zone effluent and the transalkylation zone effluent into a dividing wall fractionation column operated at fractionation conditions and divided into at least a first and a second parallel fractionation zone by a dividing wall, with the first and the second fractionation zones each having an upper and a lower end located within the fractionation column, with the first and second fractionation zones being in open communication at their upper ends with an undivided upper section of the fractionation column and in open communication at their lower ends with an undivided lower section of the fractionation column, and with the alkylation zone effluent and transalkylation zone effluent entering the column at intermediate points of the first fractionation zone wherein the transalkylation zone effluent is introduced into the dividing wall fractionation column at an intermediate height of the dividing wall fractionation column which is between the intermediate height at which the alkylation zone effluent is introduced and a first end of the dividing wall fractionation column; removing a stream comprising cumene from an intermediate point of the second fractionation zone of the dividing wall fractionation column; removing the first benzene recycle stream from the first end of the dividing wall fractionation column; removing the second benzene recycle stream from an intermediate point of the second fractionation zone of the dividing wall fractionation column; removing a polyisopropylbenzene-rich stream from a second end of the dividing wall fractionation column; and passing the polyisopropylbenzene-rich stream to a polyisopropylbenzene fractionation column to separate the polyisopropylbenzene recycle stream from a heavy aromatics-rich stream.