Inven

Claim 1

IN THE METHOD FOR THE RECOVERY OF PHENOL FROM A CUMENE HYDROPEROXIDE CLEAVAGE MIXTUIRE BY FRACTIONAL DISTILLATION, SAID MIXTURE COMPRISING PHENOL AND ACETONE AS PRINCIPAL COMPONENTS, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES THE STEPS OF SUBJECTING SAID MIXTURE TO FRACTIONAL DISTILLATION TO REMOVE ACETONE AND HIGH BOILING MATERIAL COMPOSED PRIMARILY OF ACETOPHENONE, DIMETHYLPHENYLCARBINOL AND CUMYLPHENOL, AND THEN SUBJECTING ANY PREDOMINANTLY PHENOL-CONTAINING MATERIAL WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY FREE OF ACETONE AND SAID HIGH BOILING MATERIAL BUT WHICH CONTAINS GENETIC IMPURITIES COMPRISING MESITYL OXIDE, AN ALKYLSUBSTITUTED BENZOFURAN, AND AT LEAST ONE PRECURSOR OF SAID ALKYL-SUBSTITUTED BENZOFURAN TOT THE STEP OF TRACTIONAL STREAM DISTALLATION UNTIL THE ALKYL-SUBSTITUTED BENZOFURAN HAS BEEN SUBSTANTIALLY REMOVED FROM SAID PHENOL-CONTAINING MATERIAL, AND TO THE STEP OF CONTACT IN THE LIQUID PHASE WITH A REAGENT CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A MATERIAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF A BASE AND AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION THEREOF, SAID REAGENT BEING IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO ADJUST THE PH OF THE PHENOL-CONTAINING MATERIAL TO A VALUE IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 6.0 TO ABOUT 8.5 AND BEING MAINTAINED IN CONTACT WITH SAID PREDOMINANTLY PHENOL-CONTAINING MATERIAL AT A TEMPERATURE IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 20*C. TO ABOUT 250*C. FOR AT LEAST ABOUT 0.25 HOUR, WHEREBY THE PRECURSOR-TYPE GENETIC IMPURITY IS SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETELY CONVERTED TO A PRODUCT WHICH IS SEPARABLE FROM PHENOL BY DISTILLATION AND FINALLY TO THE STEP OF FRACTION DISTILLATION TO COLLECT A PURIFIED PHENOL.