Process for recovering oil and sulfonates from filtration panel

Abstract

Process for treating filtration panels obtained by the filtration of oils containing sulfonates of earth-alkaline metal, the above filtration being carried out in the presence of filter aids essentially consisting of siliceous material, which comprises: (a) dilution of the filtration panel with a C4-C8 aliphatic hydrocarbon, preferably hexane, and addition of another filter aid, thus obtaining a suspension of the panel and of the filter aid in the aliphatic hydrocarbon; (b) filtration of the suspension of step (a), thus obtaining a solid essentially consisting of filter aid with a minimum content of sulfonate and a turbid C4-C8 hydrocarbon solution (i); (c) centrifugation of the turbid hydrocarbon solution (i), thus obtaining a solid and a purified hydrocarbon solution (ii); (d) treatment of the purified hydrocarbon solution (ii) with means suitable for eliminating the C4-C8 hydrocarbons, thus recovering the sulfonate of earth-alkaline metal.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.