Dissociation of a 1,4-bis (4-phenoxybenzoyl)benzene-lewis acid complex in an aqueous solution

A method for manufacturing 1,4-bis(4-phenoxybenzoyl)benzene, comprising:

• reacting terephthaloyl chloride with diphenyl ether in a reaction solvent and in the presence of a Lewis acid, so as to obtain a product mixture comprising a 1,4-bis(4-phenoxybenzoylbenzene)-Lewis acid complex, wherein the reaction solvent is ortho-dichlorobenzene and wherein the Lewis acid is aluminum trichloride;
• and
• contacting the product mixture with an aqueous solution, so as to obtain an aqueous phase containing the Lewis acid and an organic phase containing 1,4-bis(4-phenoxybenzoyl)benzene,
• wherein the concentration of Lewis acid in the product mixture is from 10 to 25%, and wherein the aqueous phase contains at least 90% of the Lewis acid from the product mixture, and wherein the relative weight ratio of product mixture and aqueous solution put in contact is from 3 to 0.5.