Process for the production of alcohol from a carbonaceous feedstock

A process for the production of ethanol from ethanoic acid and H2, characterised by the following steps:

• 1) introducing ethanoic acid, together with methanol and/or ethanol into an esterification reactor containing an esterification catalyst to produce methyl ethanoate and/or ethyl ethanoate,
• 2) introducing methyl ethanoate and/or ethyl ethanoate from step 1, together with H2 and water, into a hydrogenation unit comprising a hydrogenation catalyst to produce a stream comprising ethanol, unreacted methyl ethanoate and/or ethyl ethanoate and optionally methanol,
• 3) separating the resulting stream, from step 2, into unreacted methyl ethanoate and/or ethyl ethanoate and ethanol and optionally methanol,
• 4) optionally reintroducing methyl ethanoate and/or ethyl ethanoate, from step 3, into the esterification reactor of step 1,
• 5) using at least a part of the methanol and/or the ethanol of step 3, as the methanol and/or ethanol feed of the esterification reactor of step 1, and
• 6) recovering ethanol, from step 3.