A process for the preparation of an alkylene glycol from an alkene comprising steps of: a) supplying a gas composition to an alkylene oxide absorber through a gas inlet, the absorber comprising an absorption section and a sump, and allowing the gas composition to pass upwards; b) supplying a lean absorbent to the top of the absorption section and allowing the lean absorbent to pass downwards; c) intimately contacting the gas composition with lean absorbent in the absorption section in the presence of one or more catalysts that promote carboxylation and hydrolysis; and d) withdrawing fat absorbent from the absorption section and passing the fat absorbent and any liquid condensate through the sump, wherein the sump comprises one or more baffles that define a flow pathway from a sump inlet to a sump outlet between the one or more baffles.