Production of tertiary butyl alcohol from isobutane

Abstract

Tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA) is prepared by non-catalytically reacting isobutane with oxygen to provide a reaction product comprising isobutane, peroxides including tertiary butyl hydroperoxide and impurities, charging the de-isobutanized reaction product and a soluble hydroperoxide decomposition catalyst to a first hydroperoxide decomposition reactor fitted with a fractionating column to provide a liquid reaction product comprising TBA, catalyst, hydroperoxides, and contaminants, and a vaporized decomposition product, cooling said vaporized reaction product to provide a condensate, and recovering a portion as a TBA reaction product, charging the liquid reaction product to a second hydroperoxide decomposition reactor to substantially completely decompose the peroxides therein and to form a second hydroperoxide decomposition product, which is charged to a second distillation column and separated therein into a third lighter overhead fraction comprising TBA, and a third heavier liquid fraction comprising normally liquid reaction byproducts, including TBA and residual quantities of hydroperoxide contaminants, recycling the third heavier fraction to the first hydroperoxide decomposition reactor and recovering TBA from the third lighter overhead fraction.