Patent ID: 6020534
Filing Date: 2000-02-01
Classification: C07C,Y02P,Y10S

Abstract:
A process for the production of propylene and ethylene by non-catalytic oxidative cracking of propane or propane-rich C.sub.2 -C.sub.4 paraffins, which comprises:a) mixing oxygen or O.sub.2 -enriched air and propane-rich C.sub.2 -C.sub.4 paraffins at ambient temperature,b) mixing a volatile sulfur compound with steam,c) admixing the mixture of steam and volatile sulfur compound and the mixture of oxygen or O.sub.2 -enriched air and propane or propane-rich C.sub.2 -C.sub.4 paraffins and preheating the resulting admixture to a temperature between about 200.degree. C. to about 550.degree. C.,d) passing continuously the preheated admixture feed through an empty tubular reactor, while maintaining the mole ratio of oxygen to hydrocarbon between about 0.01 to about 1.0, steam to hydrocarbon mole ratio between about 0.1 to about 10 and volatile sulfur compound to hydrocarbon mole ratio between about 10.sup.-2 to about 10.sup.-6 in said admixture feed, with a gas hourly space velocity of said admixture feed between about 500 h.sup.-1 to about 50,000 h.sup.-1 at a reaction temperature between about 620.degree. C. to about 900.degree. C. and a pressure between about 0.5 to about 5.0 atm, such that propylene/ethylene mole ratio in the products is at least 0.15 and there is a coupling of exothermic hydrocarbon oxidative conversion and endothermic hydrocarbon cracking reactions due to the simultaneous occurrence of these exothermic and endothermic reactions, ande) cooling and separating the components of effluent product gases and, if required, recycling the unconverted reactants.