Prediction, Application, and Mechanism Exploration of Liquid–Liquid Equilibrium Data in the Extraction of Aromatics Using Sulfolane

Liquid–liquid equilibrium (LLE) data are critical for the design and optimization of processes for extracting aromatics. Partial LLE data for the non-aromatic–aromatic–sulfolane ternary system were acquired at 313.15 K and 101.3 kPa. The LLE data for the extraction of aromatics using sulfolane were predicted using the COSMO-RS model. Correspondingly, the predicted and experimental data were analyzed using the root mean square deviation (RMSD), distribution coefficient (D), and separation factor (S). The COSMO-RS model could better predict the LLE data for the extraction of aromatics by sulfolane. The results of quantum chemical calculation show that hydrogen bonds and van der Waals interactions between sulfolane–benzene and sulfolane–toluene were responsible for the strong selectivity of sulfolane for benzene and toluene over alkanes. The LLE data predicted by the COSMO-RS method using the UNIQUAC thermodynamic model were subjected to correlation analysis. The calculated RMSD values were all less than 0.0180, and the relative deviation (δ) between the simulated value of the main process index for the extraction column and the actual data was less than 2.5%, indicating that the obtained binary interaction parameters can be reliably used in designing and optimizing the extraction of aromatics using sulfolane.