Isothermal reactor for hydrocarbon nitration
View Patent ↗Disclosed are a process and an apparatus for synthesizing nitroalkanes by reaction of a hydrocarbon feedstock with aqueous nitric acid. By using an isothermal reactor with multiple input ports for aqueous nitric acid, a hydrocarbon feedstock may be sequentially exposed to a plurality of flows of aqueous nitric acid as it flows through the reactor.
1. A process for synthesizing at least one nitroalkane, the process comprising:
reacting a hydrocarbon feedstock with aqueous nitric acid in a reactor at a reaction temperature of between about 140 degrees Celsius and about 325 degrees Celsius and at a reaction pressure of at least about 6.89×10 6 Pascal to produce a reaction product, wherein the hydrocarbon feedstock is sequentially exposed to a plurality of flows of aqueous nitric acid as the hydrocarbon feedstock flows through at least a portion of the reactor; and
recovering the at least one nitroalkane from the reaction product.
2. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one nitroalkane is 2-nitropropane.
3. A process according to claim 1 , wherein hydrocarbon feedstock is exposed to between five and ten flows of aqueous nitric acid.
4. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the reactor comprises a titanium liner.
5. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the reactor comprises a zirconium liner.
6. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the reactor comprises a tantalum liner.
7. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the reactor is downflow configured.
8. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the reactor comprises random packing.
9. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the reactor comprises structured packing.
10. A process according to claim 1 , further comprising using flowmeters to control the flow rate of nitric acid in each flow.
11. A process according to claim 1 , further comprising positioning the flows to provide different times between successive exposures of the hydrocarbon feedstock to the aqueous nitric acid.
12. A process according to claim 1 , further comprising controlling the concentration of the aqueous nitric acid in each flow.
13. A process according to claim 1 , further comprising heating the nitric acid prior to its entry into the reactor.
14. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the concentration of aqueous nitric acid in each flow is between 10 and 40 weight percent.
15. A process for synthesizing at least one nitroalkane, the process comprising:
sequentially reacting a hydrocarbon feedstock with aqueous nitric acid in a first reactor section at a reaction temperature of between about 140 degrees Celsius and about 325 degrees Celsius and at a reaction pressure of at least about 6.89×10 6 Pascal to provide a first output stream, wherein the aqueous nitric acid is introduced through a plurality of input ports as the hydrocarbon feedstock flows through the first reactor section;
further reacting the first output stream with aqueous nitric acid in a second reactor section to provide a second output stream; and
recovering the at least one nitroalkane from the second output stream.