Process for producing alkyl methacrylates with improved water and acid management

US11560350B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Röhm GmbH · DE

Inventors

• Florian Zschunke · Frankfurt, DE
• Belaid Ait Aissa · Darmstadt, DE
• Andreas Rühling · Darmstadt, DE
• Gerhard Kölbl · Gernsheim, DE
• Steffen Krill · Mühltal, DE
• Daniel Konig · Gerabronn, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Sep 15, 2020
• Grant date: Jan 24, 2023
• Expiry date: Sep 15, 2040

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y02P20/582
• WIPO field: Organic fine chemistry
• WIPO sector: Chemistry

Abstract

A process for producing alkyl methacrylates, in particular methyl methacrylate (MMA), includes production of methacrolein (MAL) in a first reaction stage; direct oxidative esterification (DOE) of the methacrolein with an alcohol, preferably methanol, to afford an alkyl methacrylate in a second reaction stage; and workup of the alkyl methacrylate crude product from the second reaction stage. An optimized workup of the reactor output from the oxidative esterification of methacrolein involves minimizing the amount of employed water, the amount of employed acid, and/or the amount of aqueous waste streams, through an optimized recycling of the generated process water streams.