Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Navarro P., Moreno D., Larriba M., Garcia J., Rodriguez F., Canales R., Palomar J. (2023)

An overview process analysis of the aromatic-aliphatic separation by liquid-liquid extraction with ionic liquids

Revista : SEPARATION AND PURIFICATION TECHNOLOGY
Volumen : 316
Tipo de publicación : ISI Ir a publicación

Abstract

There is a lack of knowledge on comprehensive studies when dealing with ionic liquids and extraction processes. In this work, the computational COSMO-based/Aspen multiscale methodology is applied to perform a comprehensive process analysis over a wide set of 100 common ILs after properly validating against all reliable data published, in the representative field of the aromatic/aliphatic separation. The analysis describes: i) the evolution from extractive properties to extractor behavior; ii) the influence of the rigor of the model -binary (nheptane + toluene) or multicomponent (pyrolysis gasoline) and the process description, namely extractor or complete process with recycling streams; iii) the role of the IL at commercial specifications; iv) the role of the separation train. Main results highlight: i) leading role of mass-based distribution ratio to reduce energy consumption to assess a commercial recovery; ii) selecting an IL with a minimum selectivity required within the more efficient separation train to achieve specifications at the lower energy consumption. Therefore, this work presented a clear guide to properly select the IL extractive properties at process scale and commercial specifications, together with the development of an efficient separation train, as the best approach.