Gamma - Butyrolactone (GBL)

TECHNOLOGY FOR THE PRODUCTION OF GAMMA-BUTYROLACTONE (GBL)

γ-Butyrolactone (GBL) is a hygroscopic colorless, water-miscible liquid used as an intermediate in the production of other chemicals.                                                                                                                                      

GBL is mainly used in the manufacturing of N-Methyl Pyrrolidone (NMP) and 2-Pyrrolidone, which are widely used as industrial chemicals. Thanks to its strong solvency properties, GBL is also used as circuit board cleaning in electronics and paint stripping.

CONSER technology is based on the esterification of Maleic Anhydride with methanol, followed by hydrogenation of the resulting ester, and the consequent co-production of Gamma-Butyrolactone, Butanediol (BDO) and Tetrahydrofuran (THF). The process allows very high flexibility in the final products distribution, with the highest purity standards, and it can be well integrated with the upstream Maleic Anhydride technology.

CONSER is able to provide the technical design also for Gamma-Butyrolactone production from Butanediol dehydrogenation. For additional information on the latter, see ‘Gamma-Butyrolactone from Butanediol dehydrogenation’ page. 

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