Process for production of mixed butanol and diisobutenes as fuel blending components

Abstract

Provided is a process for hydrating and oligomerizing a hydrocarbon feed comprising mixed olefins, by contacting the feed with water and a catalyst in a fixed bed reactor, wherein the catalyst hydrates mixed olefins to mixed alcohols and oligomerizes mixed olefins into oligomers; introducing the resulting stream into a first separator that separates an organic phase from an aqueous phase; introducing the organic phase into a second separator that separates unreacted olefins from mixed alcohols/oligomers; introducing the aqueous phase into a third separator that separates an alcohol-water azeotrope from water; introducing the second stream into a fourth separator that separates sec-butyl alcohol to produce a third stream comprising mixed butanols and oligomers and an SBA stream; f) mixing the third stream and a first portion of the SBA stream to produce a final product stream; and g) recycling a second portion of the SBA stream to the second separator.