Purification of crude phenolacetone mixtures

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR SEPARATING ACETONE AND PHENOL FROM A CUMENE HYDROPEROXIDE DECOMPOSITION MIXTURE CONTAINING THEM WHICH COMPRISES DISTILING SAID MIXTURE IN PRESENCE OF WATER AND TAKING OFF ACETONE OVERHEAD; EXTRACTING WITH WATER AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES OF AT LEAST ABOUT 85* C. PHENOLIC RESIDUE OF SAID DISTILLATION WHICH RESIDUE CONTAINS IN ADDITION TO PHENOL AT LEAST 30% BY WEIGHT OF ACUMENE, WITH FORMATION OF AN ORGANIC LAYER AND AN AQUEOUS PHENOL LAYER; NEUTRALIZING PHENOL IN THE ORGANIC LAYER THUS PRODUCED AND SEPARATING AQUEOUS PHENOL SALT SOLUTION FROM SAID ORGANIC LAYER; EXTRACTING FROM THE AFOREMENTIONED AQUEOUS PHENOL LAYER, WITH CUMENE SOLVENT, NON-PHENOLIC ORGANIC IMPURITIES THEREIN AND COMBINING THE ORGANIC LAYER FROM SAID EXTRACTION WITH THE ADORESAID ACETONE DISTILLATION RESIDUE; EXTRACTING THUS PURIFIED AQUEOUS PHENOL WITH HYDROCARBON SOLVENT; SEPARATING FROM ORGANIC EXTRACT, THUS RESULTING, HYDROCARBON SOLVENT AND PHENOL AND RECYCLING AQUEOUS LAYER, AQUEOUS EXTRACTION OF DISTILLATION RESUDE FROM AQUEOUS EXTRACTION OF DISTILLATION RESIDUE FROM THE ACETONE DISTILLATION STEP AND FOR PROVIDING WATER IN SAID DISTILLATION STEP.