Adipic production

Adipic Acid. Nylon 66, produced from adipic acid and hexamethylenediamine (HMDA), currently is the largest-volume domestic nylon. About 90 percent of all adipic acid goes to make nylon 66 fibers and resins. Although HMDA can be made from adipic acid, a major source is from adiponitrile. The commercial synthesis of adipic acid is a two-step reaction starting with either cyclohexane or phenol. In both cases, a cyclohexanone/cyclohexanol mixture is formed as an intermediate. This mixture then is catalytically oxidized with nitric acid to the adipic product. It also can be manufactured as a by-product of the caprolactam process. 

C, b.p. 16UC. Manufactured by heating phenol with hydrogen under pressure in the presence of suitable catalysts. Oxidized to adipic acid (main use as intermediate for nylon production) dehydrogenated to cyclohexanone. 

H2N (CH2)a NH2- Colourless solid when pure m.p. 4LC, b.p. 204 C. Manufactured by the electrochemical combination of two molecules of acrylonitrile to adiponitrile followed by catalytic reduction, or by a series of steps from cyclohexanone via adipic acid. Used in the production of Nylon [6, 6]. 

Nylon A class of synthetic fibres and plastics, polyamides. Manufactured by condensation polymerization of ct, oj-aminomonocarboxylic acids or of aliphatic diamines with aliphatic dicarboxylic acids. Also rormed specifically, e.g. from caprolactam. The different Nylons are identified by reference to the carbon numbers of the diacid and diamine (e.g. Nylon 66 is from hexamethylene diamine and adipic acid). Thermoplastic materials with high m.p., insolubility, toughness, impact resistance, low friction. Used in monofilaments, textiles, cables, insulation and in packing materials. U.S. production 1983 11 megatonnes. 

Add 40 ml. of ethyl alcohol to 21 -5 g. of 70 per cent, ethylenediamine solution (0 -25 mol) dissolve 36 -5 g. of adipic acid (0 -25 mol) in 50 ml. of a 6 1 mixture of ethyl alcohol and water. Mix the two solutions, stir and cool. Filter off the resulting salt and recrystalliae it from 60 ml. of a 6 1 ethyl alcohol - water mixture, and dry the salt in the air. Heat the salt in an atmosphere of oxygen-free nitrogen or of carbon dioxide in an oil bath until it melts (ca. 160°) the product will sohdify after a short time. Reduce the pressure to 15 mm. of mercury or less and raise the temperature of the oil bath until the product remelts (about 290°) and continue the heating for 4r-5 hours. Upon coohng, a nylon type polymer is obtained. 

Carbonyiation of butadiene gives two different products depending on the catalytic species. When PdCl is used in ethanol, ethyl 3-pentenoate (91) is obtained[87,88]. Further carbonyiation of 3-pentenoate catalyzed by cobalt carbonyl affords adipate 92[89], 3-Pentenoate is also obtained in the presence of acid. On the other hand, with catalysis by Pd(OAc)2 and Ph3P, methyl 3,8-nonadienoate (93) is obtained by dimerization-carbonylation[90,91]. The presence of chloride ion firmly attached to Pd makes the difference. The reaction is slow, and higher catalytic activity was observed by using Pd(OAc) , (/-Pr) ,P, and maleic anhydride[92]. Carbonyiation of isoprcne with either PdCi or Pd(OAc)2 and Ph,P gives only the 4-methyl-3-pentenoate 94[93]. 

Amidation. Heating of the diammonium salt or reaction of the dimethyl ester with concentrated ammonium hydroxide gives adipamide [628-94-4] mp 228°C, which is relatively insoluble in cold water. Substituted amides are readily formed when amines are used. The most industrially significant reaction of adipic acid is its reaction with diamines, specifically 1,6-hexanediamine. A water-soluble polymeric salt is formed initially upon mixing solutions of the two materials then hea ting with removal of water produces the polyamide, nylon-6,6. This reaction has been studied extensively, and the hterature contains hundreds of references to it and to polyamide product properties (31). 

Since adipic acid has been produced in commercial quantities for almost 50 years, it is not surprising that many variations and improvements have been made to the basic cyclohexane process. In general, however, the commercially important processes stiU employ two major reaction stages. The first reaction stage is the production of the intermediates cyclohexanone [108-94-1] and cyclohexanol [108-93-0], usuaHy abbreviated as KA, KA oil, ol-one, or anone-anol. The KA (ketone, alcohol), after separation from unreacted cyclohexane (which is recycled) and reaction by-products, is then converted to adipic acid by oxidation with nitric acid. An important alternative to this use of KA is its use as an intermediate in the manufacture of caprolactam, the monomer for production of nylon-6 [25038-54-4]. The latter use of KA predominates by a substantial margin on a worldwide basis, but not in the United States. 

Although many variations of the cyclohexane oxidation step have been developed or evaluated, technology for conversion of the intermediate ketone—alcohol mixture to adipic acid is fundamentally the same as originally developed by Du Pont in the early 1940s (98,99). This step is accomplished by oxidation with 40—60% nitric acid in the presence of copper and vanadium catalysts. The reaction proceeds at high rate, and is quite exothermic. Yield of adipic acid is 92—96%, the major by-products being the shorter chain dicarboxytic acids, glutaric and succinic acids,and CO2. Nitric acid is reduced to a combination of NO2, NO, N2O, and N2. Since essentially all commercial adipic acid production arises from nitric acid oxidation, the trace impurities patterns ate similar in the products of most manufacturers. 

It has been known since the early 1950s that butadiene reacts with CO to form aldehydes and ketones that could be treated further to give adipic acid (131). Processes for producing adipic acid from butadiene and carbon monoxide [630-08-0] have been explored since around 1970 by a number of companies, especially ARCO, Asahi, BASF, British Petroleum, Du Pont, Monsanto, and Shell. BASF has developed a process sufficiendy advanced to consider commercialization (132). There are two main variations, one a carboalkoxylation and the other a hydrocarboxylation. These differ in whether an alcohol, such as methanol [67-56-1is used to produce intermediate pentenoates (133), or water is used for the production of intermediate pentenoic acids (134). The former is a two-step process which uses high pressure, >31 MPa (306 atm), and moderate temperatures (100—150°C) (132—135). Butadiene,... 

CO, and methanol react in the first step in the presence of cobalt carbonyl catalyst and pyridine [110-86-1] to produce methyl pentenoates. A similar second step, but at lower pressure and higher temperature with rhodium catalyst, produces dimethyl adipate [627-93-0]. This is then hydrolyzed to give adipic acid and methanol (135), which is recovered for recycle. Many variations to this basic process exist. Examples are ARCO s palladium/copper-catalyzed oxycarbonylation process (136—138), and Monsanto s palladium and quinone [106-51-4] process, which uses oxygen to reoxidize the by-product... 

Other processes explored, but not commercialized, include the direct nitric acid oxidation of cyclohexane to adipic acid (140—143), carbonylation of 1,4-butanediol [110-63-4] (144), and oxidation of cyclohexane with ozone [10028-15-5] (145—148) or hydrogen peroxide [7722-84-1] (149—150). Production of adipic acid as a by-product of biological reactions has been explored in recent years (151—156). 

Adipic acid is a very large volume organic chemical. Worldwide production in 1986 reached 1.6 x 10 t (3.5 x 10 lb) (158) and in 1989 was estimated at more than 1.9 x 10 t (Table 7). It is one of the top fifty (159) chemicals produced in the United States in terms of volume, with 1989 production estimated at 745,000 t (160). Growth rate in demand in the United States for the period 1988—1993 is estimated at 2.5% per year based on 1987—1989 (160). Table 7 provides individual capacities for U.S. manufacturers. Western European capacity is essentially equivalent to that in the United States at 800,000 t/yr. Demand is highly cycHc (161), reflecting the automotive and housing markets especially. Prices usually foUow the variabiUty in cmde oil prices. Adipic acid for nylon takes about 60% of U.S. cyclohexane production the remainder goes to caprolactam for nylon-6, export, and miscellaneous uses (162). In 1989 about 88% of U.S. adipic acid production was used in nylon-6,6 (77% fiber and 11% resin), 3% in polyurethanes, 2.5% in plasticizers, 2.7% miscellaneous, and 4.5% exported (160). 

About 85% of U.S. adipic acid production is used captively by the producer, almost totally ia the manufacture of nylon-6,6 (194). The remaining 15% is sold ia the merchant market for a large number of appHcations. These have been developed as a result of the large scale availabihty of this synthetic petrochemical commodity. Prices for 1960—1989 for standard resia-grade material have parahed raw material and energy costs (petroleum and natural gas)... 

Polyurethanes. About 3% of the U.S. polyurethanes market in 1988 was derived from the condensation product of polyisocyanates with low molecular weight polyadipates having hydroxyl end groups (195). In 1986 this amounted to 29,000 t, or 4% of total adipic acid consumption. The percentage was similar in Western Europe. About 90% of these adipic acid containing polyurethanes are used in flexible or semirigid foams and elastomers, with the remainder used in adhesives, coatings, and spandex fibers. 

Lubricants, Fuels, and Petroleum. The adipate and azelate diesters of through alcohols, as weU as those of tridecyl alcohol, are used as synthetic lubricants, hydrauHc fluids, and brake fluids. Phosphate esters are utilized as industrial and aviation functional fluids and to a smaH extent as additives in other lubricants. A number of alcohols, particularly the Cg materials, are employed to produce zinc dialkyldithiophosphates as lubricant antiwear additives. A smaH amount is used to make viscosity index improvers for lubricating oils. 2-Ethylhexyl nitrate [24247-96-7] serves as a cetane improver for diesel fuels and hexanol is used as an additive to fuel oil or other fuels (57). Various enhanced oil recovery processes utilize formulations containing hexanol or heptanol to displace oil from underground reservoirs (58) the alcohols and derivatives are also used as defoamers in oil production. 

Raw Materials. PVC is inherently a hard and brittle material and very sensitive to heat it thus must be modified with a variety of plasticizers, stabilizers, and other processing aids to form heat-stable flexible or semiflexible products or with lesser amounts of these processing aids for the manufacture of rigid products (see Vinyl polymers, vinyl chloride polymers). Plasticizer levels used to produce the desired softness and flexibihty in a finished product vary between 25 parts per hundred (pph) parts of PVC for flooring products to about 80—100 pph for apparel products (245). Numerous plasticizers (qv) are commercially available for PVC, although dioctyl phthalate (DOP) is by far the most widely used in industrial appHcations due to its excellent properties and low cost. For example, phosphates provide improved flame resistance, adipate esters enhance low temperature flexibihty, polymeric plasticizers such as glycol adipates and azelates improve the migration resistance, and phthalate esters provide compatibiUty and flexibihty (245). 

Dibasic Acid Esters. Dibasic acid esters (diesters) are prepared by the reaction of a dibasic acid with an alcohol that contains one reactive hydroxyl group (see Esters, organic). The backbone of the stmcture is formed by the acid. The alcohol radicals are joined to the ends of the acid. The physical properties of the final product can be varied by using different alcohols or acids. Compounds that are typically used are adipic, azelaic, and sebacic acids and 2-ethyIhexyl, 3,5,5-trimethyIhexyl, isodecyl, and tridecyl alcohols. 

Cyclohexane. The LPO of cyclohexane [110-82-7] suppUes much of the raw materials needed for nylon-6 and nylon-6,6 production. Cyclohexanol (A) and cyclohexanone (K) maybe produced selectively by using alow conversion process with multiple stages (228—232). The reasons for low conversion and multiple stages (an approach to plug-flow operation) are apparent from Eigure 2. Several catalysts have been reported. The selectivity to A as well as the overall process efficiency can be improved by using boric acid (2,232,233). K/A mixtures are usually oxidized by nitric acid in a second step to adipic acid (233) (see Cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone). 

The United States accounts for about a third of the world s consumption of cyclohexane, or 3.785 x 10 m /yr (about 1 biUion gallons per year). U.S. producers and their 1990 capacities are Hsted in Table 13. Texaco has aimounced that it is leaving the cyclohexane business, but the timing is not yet certain. Over 90% of all cyclohexane goes to the production of nylon through either adipic acid (qv) or caprolactam (qv). The balance is used to produce 1,6-hexamethylenediamine [124-09-4] (HMD A) and for various solvent uses (see Diamines and higher amines, aliphatic Polyamides). 

Dilute nitric acid can be used to oxidize an aliphatic hydrocarbon. For example, a significant use for nitric acid is the oxidation of cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone (qv) to produce adipic acid (qv). Most adipic acid is used for the production of nylon-6,6. 

Some other phenol derivatives are somewhat local in appHcation. Eor example, aniline is produced from phenol at only two plants, one in Japan and one in the United States. Likewise, phenol is used in the production of nylon, via caprolactam (qv) or adipic acid (qv) by only one United States producer and one European producer. These markets, like the phenoHc resin and polycarbonate markets, are quite cycHcal. Thus, the entire phenol market tends to be cycHcal and closely tied to the housing and automotive markets. 

Plasticizer Efficiency. This is a measure of the concentration of plasticizer required to impart a specified softness to PVC. Such a softness of material may be measured as a British Standard Softness (BSS) or a Shore hardness (Pig. 1). Por a given acid constituent of plasticizer ester, ie, phthalate, adipate, etc, plasticizer efficiency decreases as the carbon number of the alcohol chain increases, eg, for phthalate esters efficiency decreases in the order DBP > DIHP > DOP > DINP > DIDP > DTDP. An additional six parts per hundred in PVC of DIDP rather than DOP is required to give a hardness of Shore 80 when ah. other formulation ingredients remain constant. The consequence of this depends on the overall formulation and product costs. In addition to size of the carbon number of the alcohol chain, the amount of branching is also significant the more linear isomers are of greater efficiency. 

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