General Electric Company

Jos H Graff

Martin H Oyevaar

Christianus J Maas

The disclosure is of a process for recovering valuable phenol and acetone from by-products of the condensation of phenol and a ketone from a mother liquor obtained for example upon crystallization of a 1:1 adduct of phenol and bisphenol, the mother liquor containing phenol, bisphenol, isomers, contaminant by-products of the condensation reaction of phenol with the ketone and acidic impurities. The mother liquor is distilled/evaporated leaving a tarry residue, which is the feedstock for the process of the invention. The recovery comprises catalytically cracking the feedstock with catalytic proportions of an aromatic sulfonic acid to extract the bisphenol-A values as phenol and acetone.

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Dinteloord, Netherlands

Jos H Graff