Process for the production of acrylonitrile
United States Patent 11 1 Gasson et al.  
 1 PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ACRYLONITRILE [75] Inventors: Edward James Gasson. Dollar;  
 Thomas Charles Korsnar, Polmont; Stanley Frederic Marrian. Fife. all of Scotland [73] Assignee: BP Chemical International Limited.  
 London. England [22] Filed: Sept. 24. 1973 1211 Appl. No.: 400,199  
 [30] Foreign Application Priority Data UNITED STATES PATENTS 3.340.291 9/1967 Barclay et a1 260/4653 1 Apr. 22, 1975 3.365.482 l/l968 Khoobiar 260/4653 3.478.082 l 1/1969 Huibcrs 260/4653 3.479.385 ll/l969 Huibers 260/465 C 3.541.129 &#34;11/1970 Yamada ct a1 260/4653 3.625.867 12/1971 YOShinO Ct :11 260/4653 X 3.678.091 7/1972 Reulct et a1. 260/4653 3.681.421 8/1972 Barclay et a1 260/4653 Primary E.\&#39;aml&#39;m&#39;r.1oseph P. Brust Attorney. Agent. or FirmBrooks Haidt &amp; Haffncr [57] ABSTRACT Production of acrylonitrile by ammoxidation of propylene uses a catalyst which is an oxide composition containing antimony. titanium together with copper. magnesium, zinc. chromium. manganese. molybdenum, tungsten. iron, cobalt. nickel. indium. arsenic. bismuth, tellurium and/0r vanadium.  
 6 Claims, No Drawings PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ACRYLONITRILE The present invention relates to the production of unsaturated nitriles and in particular to the production of acrylonitrile. Processes for the production of acrylonitrile by the vapour phase catalytic reaction of propylene. molecular oxygen and ammonia are known. The catalyst for use in such processes in general comprises compositions containing one or more polyvalent metals suitably compounded in the form of oxides. Thus. for example. British Pat. No. 987.960 (The Distillers Company Limited) describes a catalyst suitable for use in catalysing vapour phase catalytic reaction of propylene. molecular oxygen and ammonia. which catalyst comprises an oxide composition containing antimony. and titanium.  
  It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved process for the production of acrylonitrile using a catalyst containing antimony and titanium.  
  Accordingly. the present invention is a process for the production of acrylonitrile which comprises reacting at an elevated temperature in the vapour phase propylene. molecular oxygen and ammonia over a cata lyst which is an oxide composition comprising antimony and titanium with. in addition. one or more of the oxides of the metals copper. magnesium. zinc. chromium. manganese, molybdenum. tungsten. iron. cobalt. nickel. indium. arsenic. bismuth. tellurium and vanadium.  
  The oxide composition catalysts of the present invention may be regarded either as mixtures of the oxides of the various metal components or as oxygencontaining compounds of such metals; under the reaction conditions either or both forms may be present. The catalyst may be prepared for instance by intimately mixing the oxides or compounds yielding the oxides on heating. or coprecipitation of the oxides. hydrated oxides or insoluble salts from an aqueous solution.  
  The proportions of the various conponents may vary within a moderately wide range. Thus. for example. suitable proportions are antimony to titanium in atomic ratio 2/l to 24/1 and antimony to each additional metal in the ratio 2/l to 24/l.  
  It is preferred to give the catalyst a prior heattreatment. for instance at a temperature between 550 and l.lC in a molecular oxygen-containing gas.  
  l he reaction of propylene with oxygen and ammonia over the catalysts may be carried out in any suitable manner. for instance as a fixed bed process in which the catalyst is used in the form of granules or pellets. or as a fluidised bed process. or as a moving bed process.  
  The proportion of propylene in the feed to the reaction may vary withinfairly wide limits. for example. between l and 20 percent by volume of the feed. and suitably between 2 and percent by volume.  
  It is preferred to use between 5 and 8 percent by volume of propylene in the feed.  
  The concentration of oxygen .in the feed may also varywithin moderately wide limits. for example. between 1 and percent by volume. The oxygen may be diluted with inert gases. and may be. for example. supplied as air. The reaction is suitably carried out in the presence. as diluent. of a gas which is subsequently inert under the conditions of reaction. for example. nitrogen. propane. butane. isobutane. carbon dioxide and steam. It is preferred to carry out the reaction in the limits. for instance between 10 and 60 percent by volume of the feed.  
  The concentration of ammonia may also vary within moderately wide limits. for instance. between 2 and 10 percent by volume ofthe feed. lfthe maximum yield of acrylonitrile on propylene is required. it is desirable to use an excess of ammonia over propylene. For instance. the preferred concentration of ammonia is about 5-6 percent by volume of the feed where this contains 5 percent of propylene.  
  The reaction is carried out at an elevated temperature preferably below 550C. e.g. between 350 and 500C.  
  The contact time. defined as the volume of catalyst divided by the flow of gas per second calculated at room temperature and pressure. may be for example. in the range 1-30 seconds.  
  The reaction may be carried out at atmospheric pressure. or at superor sub-atmospheric pressures. It is preferred to operate at a pressure of l to 5 atmosphere absolute.  
  The acrylonitrile may be recovered from the reaction products in any suitable manner. for example. by extraction with water. preferably at an acid pH. followed by fractional distillation. In one method the hot reaction gases are contacted firstly with a hot aqueous solution of sulphuric acid and ammonium sulphate which neutralises excess ammonia. secondly with cold water to extract the nitrile; the nitrile is subsequently recovered from the extract by fractional distillation. The process of the present invention is described in more detail with reference to the following examples. The atomic ratios ofthe metallic elements of the catalysts are given at the head of each example.  
 EXAMPLE 1 Catalyst Sb/Ti/Cu/Fe 3/l/0.25/l  
  438 parts by weight antimony trioxide were stirred into 1876 parts water at 50C and 60.6 parts Cu(- NO .3H- 0 in 200 parts water and 405.6 parts Fe(- NO- .);..9H 0 in 200 parts water were mixed together and then stirred in also. The mixture was brought to pl-l.6.3 by adding aqueous ammonia solution and after stirring for 15 min at 50C. it was cooled to room temperature and filtered.  
  The filter cake was re-suspended in 2.600 parts water and after stirring for l h. hydrated titanium oxide was added and stirred for a further 2 h. The hydrated titanium oxide had been previously prepared by dissolving 284.8 parts of tetraisopropyl titanate in a mixture of 800 parts of water and 170 parts of %nitric acid. adding aqueous ammoniato pH 6.5 and filtering after stirring at 50C for 30 min. The cake was washed by resuspending in 3.200 parts water and filtering. The stirred mixture containing the antimony trioxide. copper and iron hydroxides and the hydrated titanium oxide was filtered. dried at C until 15 percent water remained. passed through a coarse sieve and cake-breaker and pelleted to cylinders of 4 mm diameter and 4 mm length. The pellets were heat-treated in a furnace. in which the temperature was raised at 22C per hour and in which an air stream was injected at a rate of 50 L/hr/kg catalyst. When the temperature reached 780C. it was maintained for 16 hours and then cooled.  
  Testing of the catalyst in a glass reactor at 453C with a feed of 5% propylene. 6% ammonia. 60% air and 2992 shown in Table l for Examples 3 9 and in Table 2 for Examples 10- 13.  
 Table 1 Example Catalyst (omposition Heat treatment Reaction Yields (molar) on AN Sh/Ti/X/ &#39;lemperature Temperature propylene fed (7: Efficiency 3/ 1 /X/ recovered 71 II fl 3 X 0.25 (u 780 492 37.9 4.6 45.5 69.5 4 X (1.25 Fe 780 491 47.9 6.0 34.8 73.5 5 X 0.25 V 780 412 52.6 14.0 5.7 55.8 6 X 1.01%: X 490 65.1) 11.3 9.1 71.5 7 X 0.75 (o 780 488 13.3 2.1 76.4 56.4 1% X (l.25 M0 781) 462 36.2 11.5 21.0 46 X 0.25 W 780 492 14.5 3.2 74.3 56.4  
 Table 2 Example Catalyst Composition Heat treatment Reaction Yields (molar) on AN Sh/Ti/X/Y Temperature Temperature propylene fed &#39;71 Efficiency 3/ I /X/Y C C AN CO recovered 71 Li S 10 X/Y 0.25 Fe/().125 V 780 430 66.1 14.4 0.4 66.4 1 l 1.5 Fc/0.25 Cu 830 479 68.0 7.5 9.8 75.5 12 0.25 ctr/0.25 Cr 830 5110 51.0 12.9 23.3 66.5 13 (1.25 (u/(1.125 V 780 459 72.1 11.3 1.6 73.3  
 steam (by volume) showed the following product we claim: 1  
 yields:  
 Aerylonitrile 6-1.8 (molar on propylene fetl) acrolein 0.9&#34;) hydrogen cyanide 6.7% e 14.85? C 4.991 unreacted propylene 5.671  
 EXAMPLE 2.  
 Catalyst Sb/Ti/Cu/Fe 3/l/0.25/l.5  
 propylene fed.  
 Acrylonitrile 66.391  
 acrolein 0.7%  
 hydrogen cyanide 7.171  
 unreacted propylene EXAMPLE 3 13 The catalysts were prepared as described in Example 1 omitting and/or replacing the relevant component compound or salt as necessary with the exceptions that the hydrated titanium oxide was co-precipitated with the other metallic hydro-oxides, rather than using the separate precipitation method used in Example 1. Data on the composition of the catalysts and their testing is l. A process for the production of acrylonitrile which comprises reacting at an elevated temperature in the vapor phase propylene. molecular oxygen and ammonia over a catalyst which is an oxide composition which is a mixture of oxides of the metal components or oxygen-containing compounds of such matals or a mixture of both and whose metallic components essentially consist of antimony, titanium. copper and an additional metal selected from the group consisting of chromium, molybdenum, tungsten, iron. cobalt and vanadium. said catalyst having been heat treated before use at a temperature between 550-1 C in a molecular oxygen containing gas and the atomic ratio of antimony to each of the other metals in said catalyst is 2:1 to 24:1.  
  2. A process as defined in claim 1 wherein said additional metal is iron.  
  3. A process as defined in claim 1 wherein said additional metal is chromium.  
  4. A process as define in claim 1 wherein said additional metal is vanadium.  
  5. A process for the production of acrylonitrile which comprises reacting at an elevated temperature in the vapor phase propylene, molecular oxygen, and ammonia over a catalyst which is an oxide composition which is a mixture of oxides of the metal components or oxygen-containing compounds of such metals or a mixture of both and whose metallic components essentially consist of antimony, titanium, iron and an additional metal selected from the group consisting of chromium, tungten, cobalt and vanadium, said catalyst having been treated before use at a temperature between 550-l 100C. in a molecular oxygen containing gas and the atomic ratio of antimony to each of the other metals in said catalyst is 2:1 to 24:1.  
 6. A process as defined in claim 5 wherein said additional metal is vanadium.