Process for ethyl acetate production

Abstract

Oxidation of liquid ethanol in the presence of excess liquid ethanol and a supported oxidation catalyst provides a one step process for production of ethyl acetate. The acetic acid produced in the oxidation is absorbed by the excess liquid ethanol, which esterifies to ethyl acetate. Ethyl acetate and water are removed from the process for separation of the ethyl acetate. The oxidation portion of process is preferred with a metallic oxidation catalyst on a hydrophobic support. The esterification portion of the process is preferred with an acidic solid ion exchange resin to promote the esterification. The process can be performed in series in separate steps, or preferably, in parallel in a single vessel, preferably a trickle bed reactor.