STUDIES ON AN ALTERNATIVE WAY TO PRODUCE TO MTBE

The development of an alternative route to produce the oxygenate MTBE is of great economical importance, because large growing rates of MTBE are presumed created by the Clean Air Act in the USA and the increase d use of unleaded gasoline in other countries. This paper describes th e development of a process to produce tertiary butanol from isobutane by liquid-phase oxidation. As the production of MTBE from tertiary But anol is a proven technology, this process presents a alternative route for the production of MTBE from isobutane. In this paper experimental and computed results concerning the required reaction and separation steps of the process ,,tertiary butanol out of isobutane'' are present ed. Finally a cost estimation is presented which compares the costs pe r metric ton MTBE by producing MTBE via liquid-phase oxidation and the costs by the competitive synthesis route (production of MTBE via dehy drogenation of isobutane). This cost estimate shows that the productio n of MTBE via liquid-phase oxidation of isobutane will be economicaly attractive and will be of interest for further development