Petroleum Halogen-containing hydrocarbons

Halogen-Containing Hydrocarbons from Petroleum and Natural Gas... 

One of the reasons for the importance of halogen-containing hydrocarbons in petroleum chemistry is that the halogens, with the exception of iodine, are among the few chemical substances which react readily with paraffins. Thus, besides the numerous uses to which these compounds themselves are put, they provide a starting point for making many of the other chemical products. 

It is hoped that this attempt to summarize the more important literature on the halogen-containing hydrocarbons obtainable from petroleum and natural gas will prove of aid and save time for those considering some aspect of this field. 

Schnaak et al. [4] Polychlorinated terphenyls, naphthalenes, chloropesticides, halogenated hydrocarbon solvents, aromatic hydrocarbon solvents (BTEX), chlorobenzenes, poly aromatic hydrocarbons (EPA 610), phenols, chlorophenols, phthalates, petroleum hydrocarbons, LAS and nonylphenol (NP), organotin compounds and 2,4-dichloroaniline 1 pg/kg to 10 mg/kg for chlorine-contained compounds 10 pg/kg to 1 g/kg for solvent and phenols 1 mg/kg to 10 g/kg for EPA610, DEHP, LAS, and mineral oils Sewage sludge... 

Petroleum chemicals are synthetic organic chemicals including hydrocarbons and derivatives containing oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, the halogens, synthesized from fractions of crude petroleum or natural gas hydrocarbon components (70). 

The chlorination of paraffin hydrocarbons has been studied recently with the hope that natural gas and petroleum might prove a source for halogen derivatives of value in the arts. It has been shown, for example, that when a mixture of 5 volumes of methane and 4 volumes chlorine is heated to about 280" and passed over clay covered with aluminium chloride, there can be attained from 1000 cubic feet of the hydrocarbon about 50 pounds of carbon tetrachloride and 190 pounds of chloroform. Since natural gas contains methane and ethane the method may prove of value industrially for the preparation of the chlorine substitution-products of the hydrocarbons. If the chlorination can be controlled to give a high percentage of methyl chloride and if a way can be found to hydrolyze the latter in a satisfactory way to methyl alcohol the reactions will be of technical interest in the preparation of this important alcohol. 

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