PROCESS FOR PRODUCING FATTY ALCOHOLS FROM FATTY ACIDS

IN A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF FATTY ALCOHOL(S) A FATTY ACID OR FATTY ACID MIXTURE IS SUBJECTED TO ESTERIFICATION WITH A LOWER ALKANOL TO FORM A STREAM COMPRISING THE CORRESPONDING LOWER ALKYL ESTER OR ESTERS. THE STREAM IS VAPORIZED AND SUBJECTED TO HYDROGENATION TO FORM A STREAM COMPRISING FATTY ALCOHOL(S) AND AN AMOUNT OF UNCONVERTED LOWER ALKYL ESTER(S). THIS STREAM IS SUBJECTED TO TRANSESTERIFICATION IN A WAX ESTER REACTOR (27) IN THE PRESENCE OF A SOLID TRANSESTERIFICATION CATALYST. FATTY ALCOHOL(S) AND WAX ESTER(S) ARE THEN SEPARATED BY DISTILLATION TO YIELD A FATTY ALCOHOL(S) PRODUCT AND A STREAM COMPRISING WAX ESTER(S). THE STREAM OF WAX ESTER(S) IS PASSED TO A SECOND HYDROGENATION ZONE (34) TO EFFECT HYDROGENATION IN THE LIQUID PHASE TO REVERT THE WAX ESTER(S) TO FATTY ALCOHOL(S), WHICH ARE RETURNED TO THE DISTILLATION SEPARATION STEP.