Recovery of chlorine from hydrogen chloride by carrier catalyst process

Abstract

A process of recovering chlorine from a stream of hydrocarbon chloride includes providing a first fluidized bed of a carrier catalyst cupric oxide in a first reaction zone within a first reactor; supplying hydrogen chloride in a first stream to that first zone for fluidizing the first bed and for exothermic reaction with cupric oxide in the bed to produce cupric chloride, water and heat, removing cupric chloride from that zone in a second stream, and removing water from that zone and removing heat from that zone; feeding the second stream to a second reaction zone within a second reactor, and providing a second fluidized bed of cupric chloride in the second reaction zone, and; supplying oxygen in a third stream to the second zone for fluidizing the second bed and for endothermic reaction with cupric chloride in the second bed at elevated temperatures between 300.degree. and 360.degree. C. to produce cupric oxide and chlorine, removing chlorine from the second zone in a fourth stream, and removing cupric oxide from the second bed for reuse as a catalyst to produce cupric chloride, by direct recycling to the first fluidized bed of cupric oxide removed from the second fluidized bed; and including recycling the cupric oxide from the second bed to the first bed. The process may be performed utilizing manganese dioxide instead of cupric oxide, and multiple fluidized beds may be employed at each reactor.