What is the process of washing organic substances with methanol?
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The question is: As stated in the title, I encountered water generated by a pharmaceutical factory today, which contains 5–10% salt in the form of K2SO4, as well as 3% organic acid in the form of glacial acetic acid. Is it possible to use methanol to purify the organic acid from this water? How should this process be designed?
This is extraction; methanol definitely won’t work. Glacial acetic acid is miscible with methanol and water, so the extractant must be an organic solvent that is immiscible with water. After extraction, the layers separate, and the organic phase is taken for distillation and separation
Methanol should work; they’re not immiscible, right?