Extractive distillation was evaluated, using salts (CaCl2 and NaCl) and a mixture of ethylene glycol and CaCl2. Each technique was simulated with ASPEN-PLUS v7.0 process simulator. The same ethanol molar flow (89 kmol/h) was established for ethanol-water mixtures, in order to compare results. Anhydrous ethanol composition was higher than 97%. The influence of operating parameters on the efficiency of each simulated technology was determined by analyzing three alternatives. Temperature, molar flows of liquid and vapor and composition profiles through the columns were analyzed for each process. According to economic evaluation, all the alternatives are not economically profitable concerning prices and current costs mainly due to the investment costs of the towers. This result shows that other advantageous technologies should be considered from the economic point of view.