Propylene chlorohydrin process

Propylene oxide [75-56-9] is manufactured by either the chlorohydrin process or the peroxidation (coproduct) process. In the chlorohydrin process, chlorine, propylene, and water are combined to make propylene chlorohydrin, which then reacts with inorganic base to yield the oxide. The peroxidation process converts either isobutane or ethylbenzene direcdy to an alkyl hydroperoxide which then reacts with propylene to make propylene oxide, and /-butyl alcohol or methylbenzyl alcohol, respectively. Table 1 Hsts producers of propylene glycols in the United States. 

Synthesis. The total aimual production of PO in the United States in 1993 was 1.77 biUion kg (57) and is expected to climb to 1.95 biUion kg with the addition of the Texaco plant (Table 1). There are two principal processes for producing PO, the chlorohydrin process favored by The Dow Chemical Company and indirect oxidation used by Arco and soon Texaco. Molybdenum catalysts are used commercially in indirect oxidation (58—61). Capacity data for PO production are shown in Table 1 (see Propylene oxide). 

Propylene oxide [75-56-9] (methyloxirane, 1,2-epoxypropane) is a significant organic chemical used primarily as a reaction intermediate for production of polyether polyols, propylene glycol, alkanolamines (qv), glycol ethers, and many other useful products (see Glycols). Propylene oxide was first prepared in 1861 by Oser and first polymerized by Levene and Walti in 1927 (1). Propylene oxide is manufactured by two basic processes the traditional chlorohydrin process (see Chlorohydrins) and the hydroperoxide process, where either / fZ-butanol (see Butyl alcohols) or styrene (qv) is a co-product. Research continues in an effort to develop a direct oxidation process to be used commercially. 

The chlorohydrin process involves reaction of propylene and chlorine in the presence of water to produce the two isomers of propylene chlorohydrin. This is followed by dehydrochlorination using caustic or lime to propylene oxide and salt. The Dow Chemical Company is the only practitioner of the chlorohydrin process in North America. However, several companies practice the chlorohydrin process at more than 20 locations in Germany, Italy, Bra2il, Japan, Eastern Europe, and Asia. 

Process flow sheets and process descriptions given herein are estimates of the various commercial processes. There are also several potential commercial processes, including variations on the chlorohydrin process, variations on the hydroperoxide process, and direct oxidation of propylene. 

In two proposed alternative processes, the chlorine is replaced in the hypochlorination reaction by hypochlorous acid [7790-92-3] HOCl, or tert-huty hypochlorite. In the first, a concentrated (>10% by weight) aqueous solution of hypochlorous acid, substantially free of chloride, chlorate, and alkah metal ions, is contacted with propylene to produce propylene chlorohydrin (113). The likely mechanism of reaction is the same as that for chlorine, as chlorine is generated in situ through the equiUbrium of chlorine and hypochlorous acid (109). 

Propylene oxide is purified by steam stripping and then distillation. Byproduct propylene dichloride may be purified for use as a solvent or as a feed to the perchloroethylene process. The main disadvantage of the chlorohydrination process is the waste disposal of CaCl2. Figure 8-3 is a flow diagram of a typical chlorohydrin process. 

Figure 8-3. A flow diagram of a typical chlorohydrin process for producing propylene oxide.

Propylene oxide (PO) is an important intermediate in the manufacture of a wide range of valuable products propylene glycol, ethers, isopropanolamines, and various propoxylated products for polyurethanes (1). The current processes for the large scale synthesis of PO include (i) the chlorohydrin process and (ii) the peroxide process (1, 2). 

The disadvantage of the chlorohydrin process is the use of toxic, corrosive, and expensive chlorine the major drawback of the peroxide process is the formation of co-oxidates in larger amounts than the desired PO. The direct epoxidation of propylene using 02 (i.e., partial oxidation of propylene) from air has been recognized as a promising route. 

CH2=CH2 + Cl2 + h2o = CH20H-CH2C1 + HC1 Chloroalcohols are important intermediates. Propylene chlorohydrin is made similarly and is used for making propylene oxide by hydrolysis with either calcium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide. If calcium hydroxide is used, the byproduct calcium chloride is useless and must be dumped. If sodium hydroxide is used, the byproduct sodium chloride can be recycled to the Castner-Kellner process. 

Chlorohydantoin moiety, 73 113 Chlorohydrin, 72 649—650 Chlorohydrination, in the chlorohydrin process, 20 799-800 Chlorohydrin processes, 70 655 24 172 for propylene oxide manufacture, 20 796, 798-801... 

One ocher reaction noc shown is the formation of propylene dichloride. The demand for this compound is generally insufficient to absorb all the coproduction, so it also ends up on the list of things to be disposed of coming from the PO-chlorohydrin process, But despite this and all the ocher problems already mentioned about the chlorohydrin route, the process remains economically healthy—breathing heavily, but healthy. Indeed, 40 to 50% of the PO produced in the United States comes from this route. 

Two of the reactions calce place in the same reactor in this plant. The formation of the hypochlorous acid (HOCl) from chlorine and water, and the reaction with propylene all occur simultaneously on the left in Figure 11—2. Propylene reacts readily with chlorine to form that unwanted by-product, propylene dichloride. To limit that, the HOCl and HCl are kept very dilute. But as a consequence, the concentration of the propylene leaving the reactor is very low—only 3—5% Ac any higher concentration, a separate phase or second layer in the reactor would form. It would preferentially suck up (dissolve) the propylene and chlorine coming in, leading to runaway dichloride yields. The low concentration levels of the propylene chlorohydrin and the need to recycle so many pounds of material is the reason the process is so energy intensive. It just takes a lot of electricity to pump all that stuff around. 

The epoxidation of propylene to propylene oxide is a high-volume process, using about 10% of the propylene produced in the world via one of two processes [127]. The oldest technology is called the chlorohydrin process and uses propylene, chlorine and water as its feedstocks. Due to the environmental costs of chlorine and the development of the more-efficient direct epoxidation over Ti02/Si02 catalysts, new plants all use the hydroperoxide route. The disadvantage here is the co-production of stoichiometric amounts of styrene or butyl alcohol, which means that the process economics are dependent on finding markets not only for the product of interest, but also for the co-product The hydroperoxide route has been practiced commercially since 1979 to co-produce propylene oxide and styrene [128], so when TS-1 was developed, epoxidation was looked at extensively [129]. 

Another example of a famous organic chemical reaction being replaced by a catalytic process is furnished by the manufacture of ethylene oxide. For many years it was made by chlorohydrin formation followed by dehydrochlorination to the epoxide. Although the chlorohydrin route is still used to convert propylene to propylene oxide, a more efficient air epoxidation of ethylene is used and the chlorohydrin process for ethylene oxide manufacture has not been used since 1972. 

As an aside to the manufacture of propylene oxide via the chlorohydrin process let us mention use of this type of chemistry to make epichlorohydrin. 

The direct oxidation of ethylene to EO by O2 has now replaced the chlorohydrin process entirely because it is cheaper and involves less byproducts, but propylene oxide (a monomer in polyurethanes) is still made by the chlorohydrin route. 

Ethylene and Propylene Oxides. Ethylene oxide (26) and its derivatives are among the important aliphatic chemicals the 1950 production amounted to between 400,000,000 and 500,000,000 pounds. The chlorohydrin process was introduced in the early 1920 s and the direct oxidation process in the 1930 s, both based on ethylene. In the older process, the one most used today, the ethylene reacts in solution with hypo-chlorous acid at room temperature. 

Propylene Chlorohydrin. Propylene chlorohydrin is synthesized with the aim of producing propylene oxide. Although the latter is manufactured commercially mainly by the direct oxidation of propylene, the chlorohydrination process is still in limited use. 

Propylene oxide in the amount of 5000 tons/yr will be made by the chlorohydrin process. The basic feed material is a hydrocarbon mixture containing 90% propylene and the balance propane which does not react. This material is diluted with spent gas from the process to provide a net feed to chlorination which contains 40 mol % propylene. Chlorine gas contains 3% each of air and carbon dioxide as contaminants. 

Propylene oxide (PO) is a major bulk chemical that is useful as an intermediate for the production of glycols, polyethers and polyols. World PO production is about 7 million tons per year, with the market growing by approximately 5% annually. PO comes from two current industrial processes the chlorohydrin process and the organic hydroperoxide process (Scheme 3.1). These processes require multiple steps and suffer from the additional drawback of not producing the desired PO alone. 

Chlorine is principally used to produce organic compounds. But, in many cases chlorine is used as a route to a final product that contains no chlorine. For instance propylene oxide has traditionally been manufactured by the chlorohydrin process. Modern technology permits abandoning this route in favor of direct oxidation, thus eliminating a need for chlorine. 

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