| 摘要 |
An improved process is provided for the production of nitriles and oxides from hydrocarbons by reaction with oxygen, air or a gas enriched in oxygen relative to air, preferably the latter, and ammonia where a nitrile is desired, in the presence of a suitable catalyst. An alkane, e.g. propane, is converted to an alkene in a dehydrogenator. The product stream is introduced into an ammoxidation/oxidation reactor. The product formed therein is recovered in a conventional quench tower. The gaseous effluent from the quench tower is treated in a PSA unit to form a gas stream containing the unreacted alkane and alkene as well as a minor amount, i.e. less than about 1 percent by volume, of osygen and nitrogen, if present in the feed to the ammoxidation/oxidation reactor. The gas stream, which may or may not contain hydrogen depending on the adsorbent in the PSA unit, is introduced into a selective oxidation unit to remove the remaining oxygen and then recycled to the dehydrogenator. Hydrogen may be introduced into or removed from the PSA effluent, depending on the function of the adsorbent therein, to obtain an optimum concentration for introduction into the dehydrogenator. A particularly preferred PSA system for use in the subject process comprises two parallel PSA units containing different adsorbents such that the gas stream formed in one contains all of the hydrogen in the gas phase from the quench tower. The feed to the PSA units is divided disproportionately so that the combined PSA effluent recycle streams contain the optimum concentration of hydrogen for the dehydrogenator.
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