Recovery and separation of naphthalenes by solvent extraction

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR RECOVERING A NAPHTHALENE HYDROCARBON FROM A MIXTURE CONTAINING NAPHTHALENE AND BENZENE HYDROCARBONS WHICH COMPRISES SUBJECTING SAID MIXTURE TO COUNTERCURRENT CONTACT WITH AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION OF SOLVENT IN WHICH SAID NAPHTHALENE HYDROCARBON IS SELECTIVELY SOLUBLE AND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF AN ALIPHATIC ALCOHOL CONTAINING UP TO 10 CARBON ATOMS, AN ALKYLENE GLYCOL, A POLYALKYLENE GLYCOL, AND A GLYCOL ETHER, AT A TEMPERATURE OF FROM ABOUT 200*F. TO ABOUT 450*F. AND AT A PRESSURE SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN THE MIXTURE IN SUBSTANTIALLY LIQUID PHASE, THEREBY FORMING A RICH SOLVENT CONTAINING SAID NAPHTHALENE HYDROCARBON DISSOLVED IN SAID SOLVENT, COUNTERCURRENTLY CONTACTING THE RESULTING RICH SOLVENT WITH A LIQUID PARAFFINIC REFLUX HYDROCARBON WHICH BOILS AT A TEMPERATURE BELOW THE BOILING POINT OF THE LOWEST BOILING NAPHTHALENE HYDROCARBON IN SAID MIXTURE, SEPARATING SAID RICH SOLVENT FROM A RAFFINATE COMPRISING THE NON-EXTRACTED PORTION OF SAID MIXTURE AND AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID PARAFFINIC REFLUX HYDROCARBON, STRIPPING HYDROCARBON EXTRACT FROM SAID RICH SOLVENT, SEPARATELY RECOVERING HYDROCARBON EXTRACT FROM THE RESULTING LEAN SOLVENT, RECYCLING SAID LEAN SOLVENT TO THE FIRST-MENTIONED CONTACTING STEP AND SEPARATING A NAPHTHALENE HYDROCARBON FROM SAID EXTRACT.