US Patent 7786317 Process for epoxidizing propene

The present invention provides a process for the epoxidation of propene which comprises reacting propene with hydrogen peroxide in the presence of methanol as solvent and a titanium zeolite catalyst, the process further comprising separating propylene oxide from the reaction mixture to obtain a mixture comprising methanol, water, at least one carboxylic acid and at least one carbonyl compound, wherein the at least one carboxylic acid is at least partially neutralized, said process optionally comprising a hydrogenation stage.