In this work, liquid-liquid equilibria (LLE) data for the ternary system methyl tert-butyl ketone (MTBK) + o, m, p-benzenediol + water were investigated at 333.2 K, 343.2 K and 353.2 K under 101.3 kPa. The performance of MTBK to extract o, m, p-benzenediol from wastewaters was estimated by partition coefficients and separation factors. The Hand and Bachman equations were both applied to check the reliability of the experimental LLE data. Furthermore, the Non-Random Two-Liquid (NRTL) and Universal Quasi Chemical (UNIQUAC) models were applied to correlate the measured LLE data. The results showed a good agreement with the determined ternary LLE data with the root-mean-square error (RMSE) values below 0.71%. MTBK was proved to be a promising extracting agent in extracting benzenediols from effluents. (C) 2018 The Chemical Industry and Engineering Society of China, and Chemical Industry Press Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.