FIELD: industrial organic synthesis.
SUBSTANCE: invention relates to separation of product and by-product stream in production of alkylaromatic acids, in particular terephthalic acid, via oxidation of hydrocarbon with molecular oxygen in acetic acid solution. In order to recover acetic acid, it is separated from methyl acetate in distillation column in the form of bottom stream. Distillate containing methyl acetate by-product is catalytically hydrolyzed in hydrolysis reactor using preferably water withdrawn from emission gas washing column. Non-decomposed methyl acetate is separated from methanol and recovered in the form of high-concentration aqueous solution by extractive distillation with water, after which routed back to hydrolysis so that essentially all methyl acetate by-product is recovered and reused in the form of acetic acid. Reaction mixture in the hydrolysis stage contains no more than 30% acetic acid and weight amount of water by 3 or more times exceeding amount of recovered methyl acetate.
EFFECT: improved economic characteristics of process due to reduced loss of acetic acid and additional recovery of acetic acid when performing hydrolysis of methyl acetate.
6 cl, 3 dwg, 6 tbl, 3 ex
