| abstract |
Disclosed herein is a process for producing a denatured ethanol composition, the process comprises the steps of: hydrogenating an acetic acid feed in a reactor in the presence of a catalyst; continuously withdrawing from the reactor a crude ethanol product comprising ethanol and at least one denaturant, wherein the at least one denaturant comprises acetaldehyde; separating the crude ethanol product into an ethanol stream and at least one derivative stream comprising denaturant; further purifying the ethanol stream to form a purified ethanol stream; and combining at least a portion of the at least one derivative stream with the purified ethanol stream to produce the denatured ethanol composition; wherein the denatured ethanol composition comprises from 50 to 99 wt.% ethanol, and from 0.01 to 40 wt.% denaturant based on the total weight of the denatured ethanol composition, and wherein said process is carried out at a suitable temperature and pressure range as disclosed in the specification. |