Chlorine purification

Kharitonov et al. [59] have shown that direct fluorination of the polyimide Matrimid is possible, hence the resulting membrane should have a nice potential for use in harsh environment. Perfluorinated materials were also studied by Hagg [60] for chlorine gas purification, and were shown to be exceptionally stable in these harsh environments. The selectivity was however too low. In a later publication on chlorine purification [31] it was suggested to use perfluorinated monomers as surface-modifying compounds for pore tailoring of glass membranes for chlorine gas separation. 

Removal of chlorine and dissolved organic contaminants from potable water, after disinfection with chlorine Purification and separation of antibiotics, vitamins, hormones, etc. 

The removal of trace ammonia-nitrogen impurities is essential to avoid buildup of NCI3 in the chlorine purification and lique-... 

Purification of drinking water by adding CI2 to kill bacteria is a source of electrophilic chlorine and contributes a nonenzymatic pathway for a chlorina tion and subsequent chloroform formation Al though some of the odor associated with tap water may be due to chloroform more of it probably results from chlorination of algae produced organic com pounds... 

Chlorine Plant Auxiliaries. Flow diagrams for the three electrolytic chlor—alkali processes are given in Figures 28 and 29. Although they differ somewhat in operation, auxiUary processes such as brine purification and chlorine recovery are common to each. 

Chlorine. The solubiUty of chlorine [7782-50-5] in hydrochloric acid is an important factor in the purification of by-product hydrochloric acid. The concentration of chlorine in solution, S, is proportional to the partial pressure of chlorine, p, in the gas phase and follows Henry s law, S = i/p, in the... 

Another attractive commercial route to MEK is via direct oxidation of / -butenes (34—39) in a reaction analogous to the Wacker-Hoechst process for acetaldehyde production via ethylene oxidation. In the Wacker-Hoechst process the oxidation of olefins is conducted in an aqueous solution containing palladium and copper chlorides. However, unlike acetaldehyde production, / -butene oxidation has not proved commercially successflil because chlorinated butanones and butyraldehyde by-products form which both reduce yields and compHcate product purification, and also because titanium-lined equipment is required to withstand chloride corrosion. 

Methylphenol. y -Cresol is produced synthetically from toluene. Toluene is chlorinated and the resulting chlorotoluene is hydrolyzed to a mixture of methylphenols. Purification by distillation gives a mixture of 3-methylphenol and 4-methylphenol since they have nearly identical boiling points. Reaction of this mixture with isobutylene under acid catalysis forms 2,6-di-/ f2 -butyl-4-methylphenol and 2,4-di-/ f2 -butyl-5-methylphenol, which can then be separated by fractional distillation and debutylated to give the corresponding 3- and 4-methylphenols. A mixture of 3- and 4-methylphenols is also derived from petroleum cmde and coal tars. 

A number of perhalides aie known, and one of the most stable is ammonium tetiachloioiodide [19702 3-3] NH IQ. Ammonia reacts with chlorine in dilute solution to give chloramines, a reaction important in water purification (see Cm,ORAMINES AND BROMAMINEs). Depending upon the pH of the water, either monochloramine [10599-90-3] NH2CI, or dichloramine [3400-09-7] NHCI2, is formed. In the dilutions encountered in waterworks practice, monochloramine is neady always found, except in the case of very acidic water (see Bleaching AGENTS Water). 

The hexachloride, uranium hexachloride [13763-23-0], UCl, is best prepared by chlorination of UCl [10026-10-5] with SbCl. An alternative preparative approach is the disproportionation UCl [13470-21 -8] to UCl and UCl under reduced pressure. The obvious disadvantage of the second method is contamination by UCl, however, sublimation is a possible purification technique. Isostmctural with the hexafluoride, the hexachloride is monomeric with an octahedral arrangement of the chlorine atoms around the uranium center. 

Vinyl chloride can be completely oxidized to CO2 and HCl using potassium permanganate [7722-64-7] in an aqueous solution at pH 10. This reaction can be used for wastewater purification, as can ozonolysis, peroxide oxidation, and uv irradiation (42). The aqueous phase oxidation of vinyl chloride with chlorine yields chloroacetaldehyde (43). 

Chlorinated by-products of ethylene oxychlorination typically include 1,1,2-trichloroethane chloral [75-87-6] (trichloroacetaldehyde) trichloroethylene [7901-6]-, 1,1-dichloroethane cis- and /n j -l,2-dichloroethylenes [156-59-2 and 156-60-5]-, 1,1-dichloroethylene [75-35-4] (vinyhdene chloride) 2-chloroethanol [107-07-3]-, ethyl chloride vinyl chloride mono-, di-, tri-, and tetrachloromethanes (methyl chloride [74-87-3], methylene chloride [75-09-2], chloroform, and carbon tetrachloride [56-23-5])-, and higher boiling compounds. The production of these compounds should be minimized to lower raw material costs, lessen the task of EDC purification, prevent fouling in the pyrolysis reactor, and minimize by-product handling and disposal. Of particular concern is chloral, because it polymerizes in the presence of strong acids. Chloral must be removed to prevent the formation of soflds which can foul and clog operating lines and controls (78). 

Direct chlorination usually produces EDC with a purity greater than 99.5 wt %, so that, except for removal of the FeCl, Httle further purification is necessary. Ferric chloride can be removed by adsorption of a sofld, or the EDC can be distilled from the FeCl in a boiling reactor, as noted above. Alternatively, the FeCl can be removed by washing with water, usually in conjunction with EDC from the oxychlorination process. 

EDC from the oxychlorination process is less pure than EDC from direct chlorination and requires purification by distillation. It is usually first washed with water and then with caustic solution to remove chloral and other water-extractable impurities (103). Subsequently, water and low boiling impurities are taken overhead in a first (light ends or heads) distillation column, and finally, pure, dry EDC is taken overhead in a second (heavy ends or product) column (see Fig. 2). 

By-products from EDC pyrolysis typically include acetjiene, ethylene, methyl chloride, ethyl chloride, 1,3-butadiene, vinylacetylene, benzene, chloroprene, vinyUdene chloride, 1,1-dichloroethane, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, 1,1,1-trichloroethane [71-55-6] and other chlorinated hydrocarbons (78). Most of these impurities remain with the unconverted EDC, and are subsequendy removed in EDC purification as light and heavy ends. The lightest compounds, ethylene and acetylene, are taken off with the HCl and end up in the oxychlorination reactor feed. The acetylene can be selectively hydrogenated to ethylene. The compounds that have boiling points near that of vinyl chloride, ie, methyl chloride and 1,3-butadiene, will codistiU with the vinyl chloride product. Chlorine or carbon tetrachloride addition to the pyrolysis reactor feed has been used to suppress methyl chloride formation, whereas 1,3-butadiene, which interferes with PVC polymerization, can be removed by treatment with chlorine or HCl, or by selective hydrogenation. 

Alternatives to oxychlorination have also been proposed as part of a balanced VCM plant. In the past, many vinyl chloride manufacturers used a balanced ethylene—acetylene process for a brief period prior to the commercialization of oxychlorination technology. Addition of HCl to acetylene was used instead of ethylene oxychlorination to consume the HCl made in EDC pyrolysis. Since the 1950s, the relative costs of ethylene and acetylene have made this route economically unattractive. Another alternative is HCl oxidation to chlorine, which can subsequently be used in dkect chlorination (131). The SheU-Deacon (132), Kel-Chlor (133), and MT-Chlor (134) processes, as well as a process recently developed at the University of Southern California (135) are among the available commercial HCl oxidation technologies. Each has had very limited industrial appHcation, perhaps because the equiHbrium reaction is incomplete and the mixture of HCl, O2, CI2, and water presents very challenging separation, purification, and handling requkements. HCl oxidation does not compare favorably with oxychlorination because it also requkes twice the dkect chlorination capacity for a balanced vinyl chloride plant. Consequently, it is doubtful that it will ever displace oxychlorination in the production of vinyl chloride by the balanced ethylene process. 

Although copper catalysts were known to be highly active for this reaction for many years, it was not until the late 1960s that gas purification processes for synthesis gas were introduced that would allow the commercial use of these catalysts, which require very low sulfur, chlorine, and phosphoms feed impurity levels to maintain catalyst activity. 

Further Preparative Reactions. When pulps are to be used in the production of materials that do not retain the original fiber stmcture, such as rayon or ceUulose acetate film, the lignin, hemiceUulose, and other components must be reduced to the lowest possible concentrations. A surfactant (ionic or nonionic) is often added during a hot, weakly alkaline extraction step after chlorination. Another approach, sometimes used in addition to the surfactant step, is to treat the pulp with 6—10% NaOH after most of the oxidative bleaching is finished. This treatment removes most of the hemiceUulose. In most purification plants the final stage includes use of sulfuric acid chelators are optional. 

Lime slurry is chlorinated in the presence of Ca(OCl)2 mother Hquor, NaOH, and NaOCl (185). After concentration, the resulting slurry of Ca(OCl)2 2H20 is filtered and the cake dried. A portion of the filtrate is treated with caustic, the recovered lime is recycled, and the mother Hquor used to prepare the requited NaOCl solution in an evaporator—chlorinator, which after separation of salt, is sent to the main reactor. In a slightly modified version, a lime purification step is added (186). 

An integrated process for producing chlorine dioxide that can consume chlorine (46) involves the use of hydrochloric acid as the reductant. The spent chlorine dioxide generator Hquor is used as feed for chlorate production, and hydrogen gas from chlorate production is burned with chlorine to produce hydrochloric acid. The principal disadvantage in the integrated hydrochloric acid-based processes is that the chlorine dioxide gas contains Y2 mole of chlorine for each mole of chlorine dioxide produced. A partial purification is achieved by absorption in chilled water in which the solubiHty of chlorine is less than chlorine dioxide however, this product stiU contains 10—15% chlorine on the basis of total chlorine and chlorine dioxide. 

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