Method of purifying crude acetone stream

• US 8,710,274 B2
• Filed: 05/04/2012
• Issued: 04/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lyondell Chemical Technology LP (Lyondellbasell Industries NV)
• Original Assignee: Lyondell Chemical Technology LP (Lyondellbasell Industries NV)
• Inventors: Pourreau, Daniel B, Grey, Roger A, Kahn, Andrew P
• Primary Examiner(s): WITHERSPOON, SIKARL A
• Application Number:
  US13/464,726
• Publication Number:
  US 20130296612A1
• Time in Patent Office: 725 Days
• Field of Search: 568/410, 568/411, 568/881
• US Class Current: 568/410
• CPC Class Codes: C07C 29/145 with hydrogen or hydrogen-containing gases
• CPC Class Codes: C07C 29/80 by distillation
• CPC Class Codes: C07C 31/10 containing three carbon atoms
• CPC Class Codes: C07C 45/82 by distillation
• CPC Class Codes: C07C 45/85 by treatment giving rise to a chemical modification by chemisorption C07C45/79
• CPC Class Codes: C07C 49/08 Acetone

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of treating a crude acetone stream. The method generally includes treating a crude acetone stream which has acetone and at least one low-boiling impurity with a catalyst to form a treated acetone stream that has acetone and at least one higher-boiling impurity and then distilling the treated acetone stream to remove at least a portion of the higher-boiling impurity to produce a purified acetone stream. This is particularly helpful in processes where a more pure acetone is desired, including a process for making purified isopropanol.

Claims

1. A method of purifying a crude acetone stream which comprises

a. treating a crude acetone stream which comprises acetone and at least one low-boiling impurity with a zeolite to form a treated acetone stream that comprises acetone and at least one higher-boiling impurity than in the crude acetone stream;

b. distilling the treated acetone stream to remove at least a portion of the higher-boiling impurity to produce a purified acetone stream.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the zeolite is selected from the group consisting of a faujasite, a mordenite, a chavbazite, a clinoptilolite, an erionite, a sihealite, a zeolite A, a zeolite L, a zeolite beta, a zeolite X, a zeolite Y, a zeolite HY, a zeolite ZSM-5, a zeolite MCM-22, a zeolite MCM-41, a zeolite UCB-1 and a zeolite ITQ-2.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the zeolite is a zeolite ZSM-5.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the zeolite is a zeolite HY.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the HY zeolite has a silica to alumina ratio between 2 and 10.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the crude acetone stream is further treated with a crosslinked acidic polymer resin, and wherein the crosslinked acidic polymer resin is a divinylbenzene-crosslinked sulfonated polystyrene resin.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the crude acetone stream is 50 wt % or greater acetone.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the impurity comprises alcohol, epoxide, aldehyde, water, isobutylene, or some combination thereof.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the purified acetone stream is at least 70 wt % acetone.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the crude acetone stream comprises about 70-80 wt % acetone, at least 4 wt % methanol, at least 0.2 wt % aldehydes, at least 3 wt % isobutylene oxide, and at least 1 wt % isopropanol.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the purified acetone stream is at least 80 wt % acetone and less than 0.7 wt % aldehydes, less than 3.5 wt % isobutylene oxide and less than 1.5 wt % isopropanol.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the purified acetone stream is hydrogenated to produce a crude isopropanol stream.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the crude isopropanol stream is further purified to produce a purified isopropanol with a purity of at least 99.5 wt %.

14. A method for preparing a purified isopropanol comprising the steps of

a. feeding a crude acetone stream which comprises acetone and at least one lower boiling impurity to a bed comprising a zeolite to form a treated acetone feed stream that comprises acetone and at least one higher boiling impurity;

b. distilling the treated acetone stream to remove at least a portion of the higher boiling impurity from the treated acetone stream to produce a purified acetone stream; and

c. feeding the purified acetone stream to a hydrogenation reactor in a process for making isopropanol to produce a crude isopropanol;

d. distilling the crude isopropanol stream to remove at least a portion of the remaining impurities to produce a purified isopropanol stream.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the zeolite is selected from the group consisting of a faujasite, a mordenite, a chavbazite, a clinoptilolite, an erionite, a sihealite, a zeolite A, a zeolite L, a zeolite beta, a zeolite X, a zeolite Y, a zeolite HY, a zeolite ZSM-5, a zeolite MCM-22, a zeolite MCM-41, a zeolite UCB-1 and a zeolite ITQ-2.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the purified acetone stream is at least 90 wt % acetone.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein the acetone feed stream comprises about 80 wt % acetone, at least 6.5 wt % methanol, at least 0.7 wt % aldehydes, at least 3.5 wt % isobutylene oxide, and at least 1.5 wt % isopropanol, and further wherein the purified acetone stream is about 90 wt % acetone and less than 6.5 wt % methanol, less than 0.7 wt % aldehydes, less than 3.5 wt % isobutylene oxide and less than 1.5 wt % isopropanol, and further wherein the purified isopropanol is at least 99.8 wt % isopropanol.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein the yield of isopropanol is increased by at least 5% when compared to a process of producing isopropanol with an acetone feed stream that has not been treated with a zeolite.

19. A method for preparing a purified isopropanol comprising the steps of

a. feeding an acetone feed stream which comprises acetone and at least one lower boiling impurity to a bed which comprises a zeolite to form a treated acetone feed stream that comprises acetone and at least one higher boiling impurity;

b. distilling the treated acetone stream to remove at least a portion of the higher boiling impurity from the treated acetone stream to produce a purified acetone stream having a purity of at least 80%;

c. feeding the purified acetone stream to a hydrogenation reactor in a process for making isopropanol to produce a crude isopropanol; and

d. distilling the crude isopropanol stream to remove at least a portion of the remaining impurities to produce a purified isopropanol stream wherein the purified isopropanol has a purity of at least 99.5%.