GB1184637A - Purification of Propylene Oxide - Google Patents

Abstract

1,184,637. Propylene oxide. JEFFERSON CHEMICAL CO. Inc. 24 July, 1968 [25 July, 1967; 11 July, 1968], No. 35397/68. Heading C2C. A process for the removal of methyl formate from propylene oxide comprises introducing into a vessel, a propylene oxide, contaminated with methyl formate, and an aqueous slurry of calcium hydroxide in an amount at least stoichiometrically equivalent to the methyl formate, establishing temperature and pressure conditions within the vessel to produce a reaction between the methyl formate and the calcium hydroxide and removing propylene oxide substantially free of methyl formate from the vessel. The process may be carried out batch-wise or continuously, the latter comprising introducing the contaminated propylene oxide continuously into a column and simultaneously introducing an aqueous slurry of calcium hydroxide into the column at a point above the point at which the propylene oxide is introduced and continuously removing the propylene oxide substantially free of methyl formate overhead and the aqueous slurry containing calcium formate as bottoms, the column being operated at a temperature above the boiling point of propylene oxide but below 100‹ C., the feed rates of propylene oxide and aqueous slurry being such that the amount of calcium hydroxide or oxide is at least stoichiometrically equivalent to the methyl formate and the temperature and feed rates being correlated to minimize the amount of propylene oxide in the bottoms.