Separation processes

A process for separating one or more organophosphorus ligand degradation products, one or more reaction byproducts and one or more products from a reaction product fluid comprising one or more unreacted reactants, a metal-organophosphorus ligand complex catalyst, optionally free organophosphorus ligand, said one or more organophosphorus ligand degradation products, said one or more reaction byproducts, said one or more products, one or more nonpolar reaction solvents and one or more polar reaction solvents, in which said reaction product fluid exhibits phase behavior depicted by FIG. 1, wherein said process comprises (1) supplying said reaction product fluid from a reaction zone to a separation zone, (2) controlling concentration of said one or more nonpolar reaction solvents and said one or more polar reaction solvents, temperature and pressure in said separation zone sufficient to obtain by phase separation two immiscible liquid phases depicted by regions 2, 4 and 6 of FIG. 1 comprising a polar phase and a nonpolar phase and to prevent or minimize formation of three immiscible liquid phases depicted by region 5 of FIG. 1 and one homogeneous liquid phase depicted by regions 1, 3 and 7 of FIG. 1, and (3) recovering said polar phase from said nonpolar phase or said nonpolar phase from said polar phase.

A process for producing one or more products comprising:

• (1) reacting in a reaction zone one or more reactants in the presence of a metal-organophosphorus ligand complex catalyst, optionally free organophosphorus ligand, one or more nonpolar reaction solvents and one or more polar reaction solvents to form a reaction product fluid comprising said metal-organophosphorus ligand complex catalyst, said optionally free organophosphorus ligand, said one or more products, said one or more nonpolar reaction solvents and said one or more polar reaction solvents, wherein said reaction product fluid exhibits phase behavior depicted by FIG. 1;
• (2) supplying said reaction product fluid from said reaction zone to a separation zone, (3) controlling concentration of said one or more nonpolar reaction solvents and said one or more polar reaction solvents, temperature and pressure in said separation zone sufficient to obtain by phase separation two immiscible liquid phases depicted by regions 2, 4 and 6 of FIG. 1 comprising a polar phase and a nonpolar phase and to prevent or minimize formation of three immiscible liquid phases depicted by region 5 of FIG. 1 and one homogeneous liquid phase depicted by regions 1, 3 and 7 of FIG. 1, and (4) recovering said polar phase from said nonpolar phase or said nonpolar phase from said polar phase.