US 12,006,299 B2
Process and system for the production of ethylene carbonate and/or ethylene glycol
Jesse Raymond Black, Houston, TX (US); Roel Guillaume Hubertus Leonardus Bastings, Amsterdam (NL); and Mark Albert Petrus Dekkers, Amsterdam (NL)
Assigned to SHELL USA, INC., Houston, TX (US)
Appl. No. 17/637,197
Filed by SHELL OIL COMPANY, Houston, TX (US)
PCT Filed Sep. 1, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/074293
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Feb. 22, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/043743, PCT Pub. Date Mar. 11, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 19195653 (EP), filed on Sep. 5, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0298132 A1, Sep. 22, 2022
Int. Cl. C07D 317/38 (2006.01); B01D 3/14 (2006.01); C07C 29/10 (2006.01); C07C 29/76 (2006.01); C07C 29/80 (2006.01)
CPC C07D 317/38 (2013.01) [B01D 3/148 (2013.01); C07C 29/106 (2013.01); C07C 29/76 (2013.01); C07C 29/80 (2013.01)] 11 Claims
 
1. Process for the production of ethylene carbonate and/or ethylene glycol comprising:
a) supplying an overhead absorber stream (10) withdrawn from an absorber (6) to a vapor-liquid separator (12) to yield an aqueous bottoms stream (15) and a recycle gas stream (13);
b) supplying an aqueous process stream (17) comprising one or more impurities to a distillation apparatus (19) to yield an overhead impurities stream (22) and a purified aqueous process stream (21), wherein the aqueous process stream (17) supplied to the distillation apparatus (19) comprises at least a portion of the aqueous bottoms stream (15) withdrawn from the vapor-liquid separator (12), wherein the overhead impurities stream (22) is supplied to a condenser (45) and is cooled to a temperature in the range of from 5 to 95° C., wherein the cooled overhead impurities stream (22) is split into a reflux stream (22a) which is recycled to the distillation apparatus (19) and an overhead impurities stream (22b);
c) supplying at least a portion of the purified aqueous process stream (21) and an ethylene oxide product stream (4) to the absorber; and
d) contacting the ethylene oxide product stream (4) with the purified aqueous process stream (21) in the absorber in the presence of one or more carboxylation and hydrolysis catalysts to yield a fat absorbent stream (8) comprising ethylene carbonate and/or ethylene glycol.