Manufacture of perhalocarbon polymers

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF POLYTRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE WHICH COMPRISES POLYMERIZING IN A POLYMERZATION ZONE AND IN THE PRESENCE OF A SOLVENT HAVING A HIGHER BOILING POINT THAN TRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE AND A LOWER BOILING POINT THAN THE POLYTRIFLUOROCHLORETHYLENE PRODUCED BY THE PROCESS AND IN THE PRESENCE OF A PROMOTER, TRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE, PREPARED BY THE DECHLORINATION OF TRICHLOROTRIFLUOROETHANE IN A DEHALOGENATION ZONE IN THE PRESENCE OF METHYL ALCOHOL, INCLUDING A RECYLE FRACTION PREPARED AS HEREINAFTER DESCRIBED, AND IN THE PRESENCE OF A METAL DEHALOGENATING AGENT AND THE REMOVAL FROM SAID DEHALOGENATION ZONE OF AN EFFLUENT COMPRISING TRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE, TRICHLOROTRIFLUOROETHANE AND ABOUT 5 TO 25 VOLUME PER CENT OF METHYL ALCOHOL AND PURIFIED BY THE PASSAGE OF SAID EFFLUENT OT A FIRST DISTIALLATION ZONE, THE RECOVERY FROM SAID FRIST DISTILLATION ZONE OF A RELATIVELY HIGH-BOILING RECYCLE FRACTION COMPRISING METHYL ALCOHOL, WHICH IS RETURNED TO SAID DEHALOGENATION ZONE AS DESCRIBED ABOVE, AND A RELATIVELY LOW-BOILING FRACTION COMPRISING TRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE, TRICHLOROTRIFLUOROETHANE AND ABOUT 1 TO ABOUT 10 VOLUME PER CENT METHYL ALCOHOL, THE PASSAGE OF SAID RELATIVELY LOW-BOILING FRACTION TO A SECOND DISTILLATION ZONE, THE RECOVERY FROM SAID SECOND DISTILLATION ZONE OF A RELATIVELY LOW-BOILING FRACTION COMPRISING TRRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE AND MORE THAN 100 P.P.M. OF METHYL ALCOHOL, AND THE WATER WASHING OF SAID LAST NAMED LOW-BOILING FRACTION TO REDUCE THE ALCOHOL CONTENT OT SUBSTANTILLY BELOW 100P.P.M. TO PRODUCE A SATISFACTORY MONOMER FOR SAID POLYMERIZATION ZONE, REMOVING A REACTION MIXTURE FROM SAID POLYMERIZATION ZONE AND SEPARATING UNREACTED TRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE AND SOLVENT FROM THE POLYTRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE PRODUCT, PASSING THE THUS SEPARATED TRIFLUOROCHLOROETHYLENE AND SOLVENT TO SAID SECOND DISTILLATION ZONE, RECOVERING FROM SAID SECOND DISTILLATION ZONE A RELATIVELY HIGH-BOILING FRACTION COMPRISING TRICHLOROTRIFLUOROETHANE AND SOLVENT USED IN SAID POLYMERIZATION REACTION ZONE, PASSING SAID RELATIVELY HIGH-BOILING FRACTION FROM SAID SECOND DISTILLATION ZONE TO A THIRD DISTILLATION ZONE, RECOVERING FROM SAID THIRD DISTILLATION ZONE A RELATIVELY HIGH-BOILING FRACTION COMPRISING TRICHLOROTRIFLUOROETHANE AND A RELATIVELY LOWBOILING FRACTION COMPRISING THE SOLVENT USED IN SAID POLYMERIZATION ZONE AND MORE THAN 100 P.P.M. OF METHYL ALCOHOL, WATER WASHING SAID LOW-BOILING FRACTION FROM SAID THIRD DISTILLATION ZONE TO REDUCE THE METHYL ALCOHOL CONTENT BELOW ABOUT 100P.P.M., PASSING SAID RELATIVELY HIGH-BOILING FRACTION FROM SAID THIRD DISTILLATION ZONE TO SAID DEHALOGENATION ZONE, AND RETURNING SAID RELATIVELY LOW-BOILING FRACTION FROM SAID THIRD DISTILLATION ZONE TO SAID POLYMERIZATION ZONE.