Question: Boiling point elevation of n-butanol-water azeotrope.
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I have a question. Treating wastewater containing 2% n-butanol is possible because n-butanol and water can form an azeotrope (the boiling point of n-butanol is 117.7°C, that of water is 100°C, and the azeotrope temperature for n-butanol and water is 92.7°C). Since n-butanol is slightly soluble in water, methanol is soluble in water and also soluble in n-butanol (the boiling point of methanol is 64.7°C). By adding methanol to n-butanol wastewater, what is the separation mechanism, and can it improve the recovery of n-butanol?
Wastewater containing n-butanol can be separated by atmospheric distillation, although complete separation cannot be achieved.