Investigation of Water/Ethanol Mixture Separation by 2-Butanone and Diethyl Ether at 291.15 K: Experimental Results and Theoretical Correlation

S. Larous, N. Boulkroune, M. E. A. Seghir and N. Roubhi

Abstract
This study describes the separation of ethanol from an aqueous solution using liquid- liquid extraction. Two ternary systems, water–ethanol–2–butanone and water–ethanol–diethyl ether, were investigated at 291.15 K and atmospheric pressure using the cloud point method. Both ternary systems had a type 1 liquid-liquid equilibrium diagram. The experimental tie-line data were correlated using the non-random two-liquid (NRTL) thermodynamic model and the Hand correlation. The separation factors and distribution coefficients were calculated to evaluate the separation performance. The selectivity diagram was also used to determine the most suitable solvent for ethanol separation. Among the two solvents studied, diethyl ether exhibited the best capability for extracting ethanol from aqueous solution in this study.

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Keywords
liquid-liquid extraction, ethanol, 2-butanone, diethyl ether, NRTL model, Hand correlation, selectivity