PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF TETRAHYDROFURAN

THE INVENTION RELATES TO A PROCESS FOR ISOLATING TETRAHYDROFURAN FROM A STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN, ALKANOL AND HIGH BOILERS, WHICH COMPRISES THE FOLLOWING STEPS: (A) SEPARATING OFF A STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN AND ALKANOL AS AZEOTROPE IN A FIRST DISTILLATION STAGE (23), (B) FEEDING AT LEAST PART OF THE STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN AND ALKANOL AS AZEOTROPE INTO A REACTOR FOR ESTERIFYING MALEIC ANHYDRIDE, GIVING A STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN, OPTIONALLY ALKANOL, OPTIONALLY UNREACTED MALEIC ANHYDRIDE AND MONOALKYL RNALEATE, (C) SEPARATING THE STREAM COMPRISING MONOALKYL MALEATE (39), TETRAHYDROFURAN AND OPTIONALLY ALKANOL INTO A STREAM COMPRISING MONOALKYL MALEATE (39) AND A STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN AND OPTIONALLY ALKANOL IN A SECOND DISTILLATION STAGE (65), (D) FEEDING THE STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN AND OPTIONALLY ALKANOL FROM THE SECOND DISTILLATION STAGE (65) AND THE PART OF THE STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN AND ALKANOL AS AZEOTROPE FROM STEP (A) WHICH IS NOT FED TO THE REACTOR INTO A THIRD DISTILLATION STAGE (41) IN WHICH A PRODUCT STREAM COMPRISING ESSENTIALLY TETRAHYDROFURAN AND A STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN AND ALKANOL ARE OBTAINED, (E) RECIRCULATING THE STREAM COMPRISING TETRAHYDROFURAN AND ALKANOL FROM THE THIRD DISTILLATION STAGE (41) TO THE FIRST DISTILLATION STAGE OR TO THE REACTOR IN STEP (B). (FIGURE 1)