Phosphorus trichloride industrial production

At present, more than 5,000 tonnes of triphenylphosphane are manufactured annually worldwide. The most important producers are BASF, Atochem and Hoko. Chlorobenzene is reacted with a suspension of sodium in toluene and phosphorus trichloride. On an industrial scale, this happens in a two-stage cascade reactor. After an aqueous work-up, isolation of the commercial product is achieved by distillation. 

Major industrial uses for phosphorus trichloride include conversion to phosphorus oxychloride, POCI3, thiophosphoryl chloride, PSCI3, the manufacture of organophosphite esters (6.306), and the corresponding thiophosphite esters for use in the production of insecticides (Chapter 12.12). The trichloride is used to make compounds such as lauroyl chloride (4.219), and octyl chloride (4.220). The former compound is used for synthetic detergents, and the latter in the manufacture of rubbers, vinyl plastics and silver polishes. 

The phosphate manufacturing and phosphate fertilizer industry includes the production of elemental phosphorus, various phosphorus-derived chemicals, phosphate fertilizer chemicals, and other nonfertilizer phosphate chemicals [1-30], Chemicals that are derived from phosphorus include phosphoric acid (dry process), phosphorus pentoxide, phosphorus penta-sulfide, phosphoms trichloride, phosphorus oxychloride, sodium tripolyphosphate, and calcium phosphates [8]. The nonfertilizer phosphate production part of the industry includes defluori-nated phosphate rock, defluorinated phosphoric acid, and sodium phosphate salts. The phosphate fertilizer segment of the industry produces the primary phosphorus nutrient source for the agricultural industry and for other applications of chemical fertilization. Many of these fertilizer products are toxic to aquatic life at certain levels of concentration, and many are also hazardous to human life and health when contact is made in a concentrated form. 

---