PROCESS FOR PREPARING AN OLEFIN OXIDE

The present invention relates to a process for preparing an olefin oxide from a reaction mixture stream in an epoxidation reactor R, wherein R contains z active reaction tubes T(i) arranged in parallel, z≥2, i=1 . . . z, wherein each T(i) comprises a reaction zone Z(i) comprising a heterogeneous epoxidation catalyst, said reaction mixture stream comprising x components C(j), x≥3, j=1 . . . x, the process comprising (i) providing m educt streams E(k), m≥1, k=1 . . . m, wherein each E(k) exhibits a mass flow rate FE(k) and comprises y components C(j), y=1 . . . x, wherein a given component C(j) is contained in at least one E(k); (ii) dividing each E(k) into n educt substreams S(k,i), n≤z, each S(k,i) exhibiting a mass flow rate Fs(k,i), wherein to at least one E(k), the inequality (1) applies: Formulas (1), (2), (3), (iii) providing n reaction mixtures streams M(i) comprising the x components C(j), said providing comprising, for each i, either combining and admixing the n educt substreams S(k,i) obtaining the n reaction mixtures M(i) if m>1, or passing on the n educt substreams S(k,i) as the n reaction mixtures M(i) if m=1; (iv) feeding each M(i) obtained according to (iii) into Z(i) and contacting each M(i) in Z(i) with the epoxidation catalyst under epoxidation reaction conditions; wherein the x components C(j) comprise hydrogen peroxide, an organic solvent, and the olefin. The present invention further relates to an olefin oxide obtained or obtainable from said process.