RECYCLING OF A LEWIS ACID

摘要

A PROCESS FOR RECORVERING A LEWIS ACID FROM A REACTION MIXTURE (I) WHICH AS OBTAINED BY HYDROCYANATING AN OLEFINICALLY UNSATURATED COMPOUND TO A NITRILE WHICH, UNDER CERTAIN COMPOSITION, PRESSURE AND TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS, HAS A MISCIBILITY GAP WITH WATER, IN THE PRESENCE OF A CATALYST SYSTEM COMPRISING A LEWIS ACID AND A COMPLEX OF A PHOSPHORUS COMPOUND SUITABLE AS A LIGAND AND A CENTRAL ATOM SUITABLE FOR THIS COMPOUND, WHICH COMPRISESA) REMOVING SAID COMPLEX FROM MIXTURE (I) TO OBTAIN A MIXTURE (II),B) ADMIXING MIXTURE (II) WITH WATER AND TRANSFERRING IT TO SUCH PRESSURE AND TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS THAT A PHASE (III) WHICH COMPRISES A HIGHER PROPORTION OF WATER THAN OF SAID NITRILE, AND A PHASE (IV) WHICH COMPRISES A HIGHER PROPORTION OF SAID NITRILE THAN OF WATER ARE OBTAINED, PHASE (III) HAVING A HIGHER CONTENT OF SAID LEWIS ACID THAN PHASE (IV), C) PHASE (III) BEING ADMIXED WITH A LIQUID DILUENT (V) WHICH @C1) DOES NOT FORM AN AZEOTROPE WITH WATER AND WHOSE BOILING POINT UNDER CERTAIN PRESSURE CONDITIONS IS HIGHER THAN THAT OF WATER OR C2) FORMS AN AZEOTROPE OR HETEROAZEOTROPE WITH WATER UNDER CERTAIN PRESSURE CONDITIONS,D) THE MIXTURE OF PHASE (III) AND LIQUID DILUENT (V) UNDER THE PRESSURE CONDITIONS MENTIONED IN STEP C1) OR C2) BEING SUBJECTED TO A DISTILLATION TO OBTAIN A MIXTURE (VI) WHICH HAS A HIGHER PROPORTION OF WATER THAN OF DILUENT (V), AND A MIXTURE (VII) WHICH HAS A HIGHER PROPORTION OF DILUENT (V) THAN OF WATER, AND MIXTURE (VII) HAS A HIGHER CONTENT OF SAID LEWIS ACID THAN MIXTURE (VI),ANDE) MIXTURE (VII) BEING FED TO A HYDROCYANATION OF AN OLEFINICALLY UNSATURATED COMPOUND TO A NITRILE WHICH, UNDER CERTAIN COMPOSITION, PRESSURE AND TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS, HAS A MISCIBILITY GAP WITH WATER, IN THE PRESENCE OF A SYSTEM COMPRISING A LEWIS ACID AND A COMPLEX OD A PHOSPHORUS COMPOUND SUITABLE AS A LIGAND AND A CENTRAL ATOM SUITABLE FOR THIS COMPOUND.