Cumene-phenol complex with thermal oxidation system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11780795-B2
Application number	US-202117361690-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 29, 2021
Priority date	Aug 4, 2020
Publication date	Oct 10, 2023
Grant date	Oct 10, 2023

Abstract

A process for the treatment of waste water, spent air, and hydrocarbon containing liquid and gaseous streams in the cumene/phenol complex is described. Various effluent streams are combined in appropriate collection vessels, including a spent air knockout drum, a hydrocarbon buffer vessel, a fuel gas knockout drum, a phenolic water vessel, and a non-phenolic water vessel. Streams from these vessels are sent to a thermal oxidation system.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A process for producing phenol comprising:
oxidizing a fresh cumene feed stream in an oxidation unit section to form an oxidation product stream comprising cumene hydroperoxide (CHP), dimethylphenylcarbinol (DMPC), and cumene, and at least one of an oxidation waste water stream, an oxidation spent air stream, and a decanter vent stream;
concentrating the oxidation product stream in a CHP concentration unit section to form a concentrated CHP stream and a concentration vent gas stream;
decomposing the concentrated CHP stream in a decomposition unit section using a decomposition acid to form an acidic crude product stream comprising phenol, acetone, cumene, and AMS;
neutralizing the acidic crude product with a neutralization agent in a neutralization unit section to form a neutralized crude product stream;
fractionating the neutralized crude product stream in an acetone-phenol fractionation unit section into a fractionation cumene-AMS-phenol stream, and at least one of a fractionation phenolic water stream, a fractionation organic product stream, a fractionation waste water stream, and a fractionation hydrocarbon vent gas stream;
separating the fractionation cumene-AMS-phenol stream in a phenol recovery unit section into a cumene-AMS feed stream, and at least one of a recycled sprung phenol stream comprising phenol and cumene, and a phenolic waste water stream;
hydrogenating the cumene-AMS feed stream in an AMS hydrogenation unit section to form a MSHP recycled cumene stream;
at least one of:
introducing at least one of the fractionation organic product stream from the fractionation unit section, a fuel gas knockout drum hydrocarbon liquid stream from a fuel gas knockout drum, and a spent air knockout drum liquid stream from a spent air knockout drum into a hydrocarbon buffer vessel;
introducing at least one of an AMS hydrogen vent gas stream from the AMS hydrogenation unit section, a hydrocarbon buffer vessel vent gas stream from the hydrocarbon buffer vessel, a phenolic vent gas stream from a phenolic water vessel, and a non-phenolic vent gas stream from a non-phenolic water vessel into the fuel gas knockout drum;
introducing at least one of: the fractionation waste water stream the acetone-phenol fractionation unit section, the phenolic waste water stream from the phenol recovery unit section, and a skimmed water phase from the hydrocarbon buffer vessel into a phenolic water vessel;
introducing at least one of the oxidation waste water stream from the oxidation unit section and a benzene column water stream from a cumene production unit into a non-phenolic water vessel; and

thermally oxidizing one or more of: a mixed hydrocarbon waste stream from the hydrocarbon buffer vessel, a burner fuel gas stream from the fuel gas knockout drum, a phenolic water stream from the phenolic water vessel, and a non-phenolic water stream from the non-phenolic water vessel in a thermal oxidation system.

2. The process of claim 1 wherein thermally oxidizing the one or more of: the mixed hydrocarbon waste stream from the hydrocarbon buffer vessel, the burner fuel gas stream from the fuel gas knockout drum, the phenolic water stream from the phenolic water vessel, and the non-phenolic water stream from the non-phenolic water vessel comprises:
thermally oxidizing the one or more of: the mixed hydrocarbon waste stream from the hydrocarbon buffer vessel, the burner fuel gas stream from the fuel gas knockout drum, the phenolic water stream from the phenolic water vessel, the non-phenolic water stream from the non-phenolic water vessel in a thermal oxidizing section forming a flue gas consisting essentially of at least one of H 2 O, CO 2 , N 2 , O 2 , HCl, Cl 2 , Na 2 SO 4 , Na 2 CO 3 , SOx, and NOx;
recovering waste heat from the flue gas in a waste heat recovery section;
optionally quenching the flue gas in a quench section after recovering the waste heat to form a quenched flue gas consisting essentially of at least one of H 2 O, CO 2 , N 2 , O 2 , HCl, Cl 2 , Na 2 SO 4 , Na 2 CO 3 , SOx, and NOx;
optionally removing at least one of Na 2 SO 4 , Na 2 CO 3 , SOx, HCl, and Cl 2 from the flue gas or the quenched flue gas in a SOx removal section to form a de-SOx outlet flue gas consisting essentially of at least one of H 2 O, CO 2 , N 2 , O 2 , NOx, wherein removing the SOx from the flue gas comprises:
contacting a caustic solution or an NH 3 based solution with the quenched flue gas in a scrubbing section to form the de-SOx outlet flue gas and a liquid effluent comprising at least one of H 2 O, Na 2 SO 3 , Na 2 SO 4 , NaHSO 3 , Na 2 CO 3 , NaCl, (NH 4 ) 2 SO 4 , and NH 4 Cl;
or
reacting the flue gas with a reactant in an SOx reaction section to form a reaction section flue gas consisting essentially of at least one of H 2 O, CO 2 , N 2 , O 2 , NaCl, Na 2 CO 3 , Na 2 SO 4 , NaNO 3 , CaCl 2 ), CaSO 4 , CaCO 3 , Ca(NO 3 ) 2 , MgCl 2 , MgCO 3 , MgSO 4 , Mg(NO 3 ) 2 , Cl 2 , and NOx wherein the reactant comprises NaHCO 3 , NaHCO 3 ·Na 2 CO 3 ·2(H 2 O), CaCO 3 , Ca(OH) 2 , and Mg(OH) 2 ; and
optionally filtering the reaction section flue gas in an optional filter section to remove at least one of NaCl, Na 2 CO 3 , Na 2 SO 4 , NaNO 3 , CaCl 2 ), CaSO 4 , CaCO 3 , Ca(NO 3 ) 2 , MgCl 2 , MgCO 3 , MgSO 4 , and Mg(NO 3 ) 2 to form the de-SOx outlet flue gas; and

optionally removing NOx from the flue gas in an optional NOx removal section, the quenched flue gas or the de-SOx outlet flue gas to form a de-NOx outlet flue gas consisting essentially of at least one of H 2 O, CO 2 , N 2 , and O 2 .

3. The process of claim 2 further comprising:
providing the recovered waste heat to one or more of: a vaporizer in the CHP concentration unit section, a dehydrator steam heat exchanger in the decomposition unit section, and a reboiler in the acetone-phenol fractionation unit section.

4. The process of claim 1 further comprising:
introducing at least one of: the oxidation spent air stream from the oxidation unit section, the decanter vent stream from the oxidation unit section, and the fractionation hydrocarbon vent gas stream from the acetone-phenol fractionation unit section into a spent air knockout drum;
optionally preheating a spent air stream from the spent air knockout drum; and
thermally oxidizing the spent air stream from the spent air knockout drum in the thermal oxidation system.

5. The process of claim 1 wherein oxidizing the fresh cumene feed stream in the oxidation unit section to form the oxidation product stream comprises:
passing the fresh cumene feed and an oxidation air feed stream to at least one oxidation reactor to form the oxidation product stream and an oxidation spent air stream;
cooling the oxidation spent air stream in an oxidizer vent gas cooler before introducing the oxidation spent air stream into a spent air knockout drum, and forming a condensate stream;
passing the condensate stream to a decanter vessel and forming the decanter vent stream, the oxidation waste water stream, and a decanter cumene recycle stream;
washing the decanter cumene recycle stream with a recycle cumene wash water stream and a recycle cumene wash caustic stream in a cumene feed wash column to form a washed cumene stream and a recycle cumene wash water waste stream;
passing the washed cumene stream to the oxidation reactors;
passing the recycle cumene wash water waste stream to the non-phenolic water vessel; and
optionally at least one of passing the MSHP recycle cumene stream from the AMS hydrogenation unit section to the cumene feed wash column and passing a concentration section recycle cumene stream from the CHP concentration unit section to the cumene feed wash column.

6. The process of claim 1 further comprising at least one of;
recycling a concentration section recycle

Assignees

• Honeywell Int Inc

Inventors

• De Ren Jan
• Borland David K
• Jackson Tom
• Williams Chad A
• Bauer Cooper W
• Whyman William J

Classifications

• C07C37/006 Primary

  from the petroleum industry · CPC title

• B01D53/343

  Heat recovery · CPC title

• B01D53/50

  Sulfur oxides (B01D53/60 takes precedence) · CPC title

• C02F1/04

  by distillation or evaporation · CPC title

• C02F1/72

  by oxidation {(C02F1/4672 takes precedence)} · CPC title