ABSTRACT
When an aqueous solution containing a nonionic surfactant is heated above its cloud point, the solution may separate into two phases: a dilute phase and a phase containing the surfactant in high concentration, which is also called the coacervate phase. An organic solute originally present in solution will tend to become concentrated in the coacervate phase. In this study, separation of n-alcohols and 4-tert-butylphenol using this liquid-coacervate extraction technique was examined. The ratio of concentrations of the solute in the coacervate to that in the dilute phase could exceed 500 with phase volume ratios exceeding 20, indicating the high efficiency of this separation technique.
