Qo wht ow PLACE IN RETURN BOX to remove this checkout from your record. TO AVOID FINES return on or before date due. MAY BE RECALLED with earlier due date if requested. DATE DUE DATE DUE DATE DUE 6/01 c:/CIRC/DateQue.p65-p. 15 THE DEVELOPMENT OF 4 COMMER CIAL PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE oF DIMETHYLANILINE. A THESIS Submitted to the Faculty of the MICHIGAN AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE BY RAYMOND LEROY BAX?ER Candidate for the Degree Of Chemical Engineer. 1920. wN reer CONTENTS Chapter I Introduction. II Dimethylaniline: Its importance and use. Iftl Literature. IV Experimental Work. V Design of plant: Operation, and costs. 93879 CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION. Prior to the Great War the production of dyes in the United States was negligible. Of the total consumption only about one fifth was produced in this country, or about 3,000 short tons, and practically all of the intermediates or basis of these colors were imported from Germany. In the year 1914 about seven companies were engaged in producing dyes employing about 600 men, and having a total capital of $3,000 (000. The quanity produced was as Said before, about 6,000,000 pounds with a value of $3,500,000. In 1918 the United States produced approximately 76,802,959 pounds of different dyes with a total Valuation of $63,815,746. Nowe CHAPTER II. DIMETHYLANALINE: ITS IMPORTANCE AND USE. From the ten substances or “crudes" as they are commonly designated, obtained from coal tar suitable for making dyes, three hundred intermediates are manufactured. These three hundred intermediates from the bases of about nine hundred dyes of commercial importance at the present time. The intermediates are divided into about ten different classes according to the characteristic groups which they contain. Dimethyl-aniline is a member of the Secondary Amines and their derivatives group. It is superceded only by déphenylamine in quantity used and which amounts to 4,263,458 pounds with a value of $2,412,820. At the present time the demand far exceeds the amount produced. It finds its main use in the manufacture of two very important dye stuffs, namely, Malachete Green and Mekhyl Violet. The quanity of these dyes used amounts to 290,416 pounds with e valuation of $1,626,466 for Malachete Green and 632,196 pounds with a valuation of $1,756,775 for Methyl Violet. Prom the above figures it can be readily seen that this compound is of considerable commercial importance. To develop a process for its manufacture commercially was a problem thought worthy of under- taking. CHAPTER III. LITERATURE. The first steps in the work of developing a commercial process for the manufacture of dimethyl- aniline was to examine the literature, and to discover if possible what work had been done on the manufacture of this intermediate. A thoro examination revealed that while it was being manufactured in Germany in considerable quantity very little had been written regarding the type of apparatus used and the control of the process. It was found that there were four processes of commercial value which are as follows: ANILINE HYDROCHLORIDE PROCESS A mixture of aniline seventy-five parts, aniline hydrochloride twenty-five parts, and methyl alcohol (free from acetone) seventy-five parts is heated in a cast iron auto clave at 230° to 270°. METHYL CHLORIDE PROCESS. | Aniline (50 kilos) is well agitated in an : | | auto-clave with milk of lime made from 40 kilos of 5. quick line and 75 litres of water. The whole is heated to 100° C. and methyl chloride pumped in at 5-6 atmospheres pressure. About 62 kilos of methyl chloride are required and the time taken about three hours. The dimethyl aniline is then distilled with stean. THE IODINE PROCESS. This process consists in heating aniline with methyl alcohol and iodine at 230° C for seven hours. Distilling off the dimethyl aniline with stean. THE SULPHURIC ACID PROCESS. Bighty kilograms of aniline, seventy-eight kilograms of methyl alcohol and eight kilograms of sulphuric acid 66° Be, ate heated together in an autoclave at 230° to 235°. The pressure rises to twenty-eight to thirty-two atmospheres. This pressure remains constant for three hours after whioh it falls off as the reaction slows up. The proémct is then neutralised with caustic soda and the dimethyl aniline distilled with steam. | From these four processes the "Sulphuric Acid Process" was chosen as having the likeliest commroial possibilities. The aniline hydrochloride process was rejected because of the cost of aniline hydro- chloride and because of the extremely high wear and tear On apparatus caused by the volatile acid. The Methyl Chloride Procese was considered unsuitable because of the excessive cost of Methyl Chloride. The Iodine Process was also dropped because of the price of Iodine. There is one other process which has not been meationed before but which seems to have commercial possibilities. This is the treatment of aniline with dimethyl sulphate. At the present time nothing has been done with it, but it is a process worthy of looking carefully into. CHAPTER IV EXPERIMENTAL WORK. It is thought that the reactions in the "Sulphuric Acid Process" are as follows: & CHZ0H + Hp80, > (CHg), 80, + 8H,0 In order to carry on the work in the laboratory it immediately became necessary to develop some sort of a simple inexpensive piece of | apparatus capable of standing the tremendous pressure involved in the reaction. A bomb made of a piece of two inch pipe six inches long and capped at both ends which was to be heated in an oil bath was first concieved. This bomb held a charge of eighty grams of aniline, seventy- eight grams of methyl alcohol, and eight gran of sulphuric acid 66° Be. This was to give a yield of ninety six grams of di-methyl aniline. The bomb was heated in an oil bath at 280° to BS0° for five hours. It became apparent during this first run that it was going to be difficult to keep the bomb tight under the temperature and excessive pressure conditions, and it may be said right here that this difficulty was encountered thruout all of the laboratory work and the semi manufacturing scale as well. It proved to be the hardest difficulty to surmount and one which is very important as the success of the process depends upon there being no leaks of pressure Since during the time of a run even the very slightest leak will cause a loss of aloohol in the form of vapor which will prevent complete oonversion and the produot will be contaminated with the mono methyl compound. The yield of di-methyl aniline from this first run was only fifty two grams and of very poor quality. sulphuric acid 66° Be. heated at 230° C for twelve hours. and s are closed, the mixture collecting separates the water flowing off at s) and the dimethyl-aniline at Pp into the sponge filter, Plate VIII. The sponge filter consists of a tank which is partly filled with a bag of sponges. The sponges take up what little water is left in the dimethyl aniline and it is ready for shipping. After steam distillation dimethyl-aniline should not come in contact with copper, bronze or brass as it is discolored by these metals. This same will occur in glass bottles when exposed to Ss light and especially with simultaneous addition of air. Cast or sheet iron drums are to be used as containors when shipping. 21 DETAILS OF OPERATION. Work is started at six in the morning. The autoclaves are charged from the masuring tanks wi th 80 kilograms of aniline, 78 kilograms of methyl alcohol and 8 kilograms of sulphurié acid in each. It is thot desirable to prepare the aloohol and sulphuric acid a head of time as this tends to speed up the reaction. Half of the aniline is run in and then the alcohol and sulphuric acid and then the rest of the aniline. It is figured that the loading ought to be completed by 10 o'clock at whioh time heating is begun and the temperature held at 230° to 235° C. as shown by a thermometer placed in the metal bath. At about 2 o'clock in the afternoon the maximum pressure ought to be reached. This pressure remains constant for about three hours and recedes slightly there after. At 11 o'clock at night the heating is completed and the autoclaves allowed to cool until the next morning. In the moming the blowing off is started: the blow off valves in the autoclaves are slowly opened, these are connected to a system of pipes which oonvey the issuing gases and steam to a condenser in which the methyl alcohol condenses. The gases which pases thru the oondenser consisting mainly of methyl ether 22 are passed thru a water scrubber before being released into the air. This sorubber will alse keep back any methyl alcohol that passes thru the condenser. After all the pressure is released, the blowing off of the product into the steam still is commenced. This is accomplished by means of con- pressed air. A little water and sufficient Caustic soda to neutralize the excess acid are placed in the still. As 800n as the dimethyl-aniline is all in,a little steam is turned into the inside to mix the contents, then the steam is turned into the jacket. Water and methyl alcohol distill off first and are condensed. After most of this alcohol is out, steam is turned into the inside of the still. ‘fhe steam carries out the dimethyl-aniline and also a little alcohol which remains. This passes into the first condenser where the steam and dimethyl-aniline are condensed and returned to the still; the methyl alcohol passes on to the second condenser where it is cond ensed and collected. The distillation is carried on slowly until drops of dimethyl-aniline separate rapidly from the mixture in the still. The vapours are now conducted direotly into the large condenser. The condensate which is a mixture of water and dimethyl-aniline is then run uy . a 25 into the separating tank where the dimethyl-aniline is drawn off and the water flows away. From the separating tank the dimethyl-aniline is run into a sponge filter which removes all of the water. The dimethyl-aniline is now placed in oontainers for shipping. There is little more to say in regard to details of operation. Three ma@m on each shift ought to be sufficient to run the entire plant. STEAM REQUIREMENTS. During the maximum distillation period the condensate consists of 1 part dimethyl-aniline and 6 parts water added as steam. However, before and after this period mre steam is required, further the jacket of the still is steam heated and steam is used for the compressing of air. Therefore, six fold weight is not sufficient and it is figured that 15 parts of steam to 1 part of dimethyl-aniline will be required. At the present time it is impossible to figure the cost of this as the price of coal is go variable. TESTING OF DIMETHYL-ANILINE. For the determination of mono-methyl-aniline YY 24 the acetic anhydride test is used. acetic anhydride added to pure dimethyl-aniline causes a lowering of the temperature of almost 1 degree. In the best commercial grades about 1/2 degree. If the mono- methyl-aniline content is not too high 1° increase in temperature corresponds to about 1/2% of mono- methyl-aniline (exact .815° for 1% mono methyl- aniline acoording to the Chemiker Zeitung 1889 S387). The specifications for de-nethyl-aniline at the present time are that it mst have a boiling point within 4° of its true boiling point, which is 192° C. allowing a variation of 2°- or 2°+ and mest not contain mre than 1/2% of mono-methyl- aniline, this last is very important. 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