Process for recovering ethylene from an olefin stream produced by a methanol to olefin reaction
OwnerChristiaan P. van Dijkinventor
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Abstract
A polymerizable grade of ethylene is recovered from an olefin-containing composition, prepared by the conversion of a methoxy compound to olefins, by a process which significantly reduces the requirements of the demethanizer distillation column through which hydrogen and methane are eliminated as impurities from the ethylene product without suffering economically unacceptable losses of ethylene to the hydrogen-methane fraction that is separated. The invention also provides for a C-2 splitter column of simplified requirements.
Claims15
A process for producing and recovering ethylene, comprising the steps of:
- converting a methoxy composition to a mixture containing ethylene, methane and hydrogen;
- feeding said ethylene containing mixture to a first distillation unit to produce
- an ethylene containing condensate stream essentially free of any content of methane and hydrogen, and a vapor stream composition containing ethylene and methane in a mole ratio of ethylene to methane of at least about 1:1.
A process for producing and recovering ethylene, comprising the steps of:
- converting a methoxy composition to an ethylene containing mixture;
- separating C.sub.2 hydrocarbons and lighter components from said mixture;
- feeding said C.sub.2 hydrocarbons and lighter components to a distillation column to produce
- a column condensate stream comprising C.sub.2 hydrocarbons essentially free of any content of methane and hydrogen, and
- a column vapor stream composition comprising ethylene and methane in a mole ratio of ethylene to methane of at least about 3:1;
- compressing said column vapor stream composition to a pressure wherein its ethylene content has a condensation point temperature which is greater than that temperature of the column condensate stream;
- passing said compressed composition into indirect heat exchange contact with condensate within said distillation column and thereafter feeding said compressed composition to a vapor-liquid separator;
- and
- dispersing liquid taken from said vapor-liquid separator within an upper portion of said distillation column as reflux.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.