Fmc Corporation

Harry M Smith

Joseph H Finley

Monte L Uhrig

Raymond D Williams

Tawny R Hall

Terry W Willis

Unreacted phosphorus and heavy metals, such as arsenic and antimony, are removed in environmentally acceptable form from the non-aqueous still bottoms residue resulting from the production of PCl.sub.3, by reacting the residue with an excess of calcium hydroxide in the form of an aqueous lime slurry and separating the reaction product into a precipitate and a filtrate. The reaction with lime slurry may be preceded by hydrolysis with water. The precipitate passes the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) test and the filtrate contains less than 5 ppm of the heavy metals, thus permitting disposal by landfill and sewering, respectively, under EPA regulations.

Process for removing phosphorus and heavy metals from phosphorus

A continuous process for producing alkyl and alkoxy alkyl phosphates in which an alkali metal alkoxide at a temperature at 50.degree. C. or less is continuously fed to a reactor while phosphorus oxychloride is continuously fed to the reactor under ratio control. Part of the contents of the reactor is circulated through a cooling device or apparatus to help maintain optimum reaction temperature. The phosphorus oxychloride ratio is adjusted to maintain proper reaction end point. Crude reaction product is continuously removed from the reactor and quenched with water to remove sodium chloride and stop the reaction.

Continuous phosphorylation process

A continuous process for producing alkali metal alkoxides comprising continuously introducing an aqueous solution of an alkali metal hydroxide into an upper section of a column reactor; continuously vaporizing an alkanol or an alkoxyalkanol of 4 to 18 carbon atoms into a lower section of the reactor at a rate of at least about 2 to 4 moles of alcohol for each mole of alkali metal hydroxide introduced into the reaction zone; reacting the aliphatic alcohol with the alkali metal hydroxide in the reactor; concurrently removing water from the alkali metal hydroxide solution and the alkoxide formation from an upper section of the reactor as an azeotrope formed by excess alcohol and water; continuously condensing and separating the azeotrope into an alcohol phase and a water phase, the water phase being removed from the process and the alcohol phase being returned to the column reactor; and removing a substantially anhydrous reaction product consisting primarily of alkoxide product in excess alcohol from a bottom section of the reactor while simultaneously maintaining a nonoxidizing atmosphere while conducting the reaction.

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St. Albans, WV, United States of America

Harry M Smith