US EPA

1194841 

Journal Article 

SEPARATION OF ALCOHOL ETHER HYDROCARBON MIXTURES IN INDUSTRIAL ETHERIFICATION PROCESSES FOR GASOLINE PRODUCTION 

Streicher, C; Asselineau, L; Forestiere, A 

1995 

1 

Pure and Applied Chemistry
ISSN: 0033-4545
EISSN: 1365-3075 

67 

6 

985-992 

English 

10.1351/pac199567060985 

WOS:A1995RF17200017 

http://iupac.org/publications/pac/67/6/0985/
Exit
 

Ether synthesis is growing in importance in the oil industry, due to their increasing use as octane enhancers in gasolines. Ethers are obtained by the addition of an alcohol on an iso-olefin. The main ethers of industrial interest for gasolines are: MTBE (methyl tert-butyl ether) resulting from the addition of methanol on isobutene. TAME (tert-amyl methyl ether) resulting from the addition of methanol on isoamylenes. ETBE (ethyl tert-butyl ether) resulting from the addition of ethanol on isobutene. The reaction step of etherification processes yield rather complex mixtures of alcohols, ethers and hydrocarbons which are difficult to separate due to the existence of numerous azeotropes. After reviewing the use of ethers as gasoline components this paper describes the separation steps which are involved, in the case of ETBE synthesis. It is particularly shown that an accurate knowledge of the thermodynamical behaviour of ethanol/ETBE/C-4 mixtures is essential for the design of these separation steps. 

13th IUPAC International Conference on Chemical Thermodynamics 

JUL 17-22, 1994