Recovery of carboxylic acids, C2C6, from an aqueous waste stream using tributylphosphate (TBP): Effect of presence of inorganic acids and their sodium salts

Abstract

Extraction of carboxylic acids, C₂C₆, was carried out with tributylphosphate (TBP) from an aqueous waste stream at pH = 2, 2.5, and at as such pH taken from an environmental process engineering point of view. The effect of the presence of H₂SO₄ and HCl on the distribution coefficients for C₂C₆ carboxylic acids was investigated. The measurements were also carried out in the presence of inorganic salts such as Na₂SO₄ and NaCl.