Abstract:
Continuous production of substantially or wholly water-soluble esters of glycols or their monoethers with lower fatty acids by reaction of a glycol of the formula (I): HO-A-X (I) in which A is ethylene, propylene or butylene; and X is OH or OR in which R is alkyl of one to four carbon atoms or OAOH or OAOR in which A and R have the meanings given above with a lower saturated fatty acid at elevated temperature in the presence of a catalytic amount of a strong acid while continuously removing the water formed by means of an entrainer followed by treatment with an aqueous alkali. The glycol of the formula (I) is reacted in a first zone with the lower fatty acid, the water formed being distilled off as an azeotrope over the top by means of an entrainer, and the crude glycol ester including the entrainer is removed from the bottoms, mixes with an aqueous alkali, extracted in a second zone while supplying an extractant and water with phase separation and in a third zone the pure glycol ester is recovered from the resulting mixture of glycol ester, entrainer and extractant by rectification. Glycol esters are used as solvents for surface coating agents.