A complex dynamic model for reactive distillation, which includes control systems and the capability of coupling additional columns is derived. On this basis, a typical reactive distillation column coupled with a recovery column is investigated and optimized. In this paper, the esterification of myristic acid in a reaction column as a typical example is optimized through simulations. To guarantee an almost complete conversion of the acid and a high purity of the reaction by product water, the reaction column is coupled with a recovery column. Both columns are designed based on steady state simulations. To develop a control structure, the reaction column’s steady state and dynamic sensitivity of possible disturbances and manipulated variables are analyzed. It is shown, that in this reaction column there is no direct relationship between temperature and purity as is usual in common distillation columns. The influence of the reaction on the temperature profile within the reaction column has to be known, when the temperature is used as a reference variable for the purity. The recovery does not lead to an instability of the system. With this knowledge an efficient control structure is presented for this strongly non-linear coupled system. The purities of the product streams can be guaranteed.