Process for producing hydrogen cyanide

摘要

There is disclosed a process for efficiently producing hydrogen cyanide at a reaction temperature of preferably 250 DEG to 550 DEG C. by a catalytic dehydrative reaction of formamide which comprises employing as a catalyst, a manganese oxide (MnO) and/or a magnesium oxide (MgO) each modified with an alkali metal (Na, K, Rb, Cs, etc. ). The above process is capable of producing hydrogen cyanide at an enhanced conversion efficiency of formamide and at a high selectivity while minimizing the by-production of ammonia. The use of the catalyst comprising as a principal component, MnO modified with an alkali metal is particularly effective in prolonging its service life and enables a long-term stable operation.