Reactor equipment for the production of tetrafluoroethylene

Claim 1

A REACTOR FOR THE PRODUCTION OF TETRAFLUOROETHYLENE BY THE STEAM-INITIATED PYROLYSIS OF CHLORODIFLUOROMETHANE, COMPRISING A VERTICALLY-MOUNTED ENCLOSED REACTION VESSEL HAVING CONSECUTIVELY POSITIONED AND INTERCONNECTED THEREWITHIN A MIXING ZONE, A REACTION ZONE, AN ADIABATIC EXPANSION ZONE, AND A COOLING ZONE, A STEAM-JET INJECTION NOZZLE HAVING A DIFFUSION LIP EXTENDINNG DOWNWARDLY THROUGH THE TOP OF THE REACTION VESSEL INTO THE MIXING ZONE, A FULLY ENCLOSED INLET MANIFOLD CHAMBER CONCENTRICALLY DISPOSED ABOUT THE STEAM-JET INJECTION NOZZLE, INLET MEANS FOR CYCLONICALLY INTRODUCING PREHEATED CHLORODIFLUOROMETHANE INTO THE INLET MANIFOLD CHAMBER ABOVE THE DIFFUSIONN LIPS OF THE STEAM-JET INJECTION NOZZLE, SPRAY COOLING MEANS FOR QUENCHINNG THE COOLING ZONE THE HOT REACTION GASES WHICH EXIT FROM THE ADIABATIC EXPANSION ZONE, MEANS FOR WITHDRAWING TETRAFLUOROETHYLENE AND OTHER GASEOUS REACTION PRODUCTS FROM THE COOLING ZONE, AND MEANS FOR WITHDRAWING BY-ORODUCT HYDROCHLORIC ACID AND COOLANT FROM THE COOLING ZONE, THE MIXING ZONE BEING DEFINED BY A CONICAL WALL OF THE REACTION VESSEL EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE INLET MANIFOLD CHAMBER AND SURROUNDING THE DIFFUSION LIP OF THE STEAM-JET INJECTION NOZZLE AND COVERGING TO A CYLINDRICAL VENTURI-THROAT, THE REACTION ZONE BEING DEFINED BY THE WALL OF SAID CYLINDRICAL VENTURITHROAT, AND THE ADIABATIC EXPANSION ZONE BEING DEFINED BY A SECOND CONICAL WALL OF THE REACTION VESSEL DIVERGING IN DIAMETER FROM ITS UPPER TO ITS LOWER END, THE CONICAL WALL DEFINING THE MIXING ZONE, THE CYLINDRICAL VENTURITHROAT DEFINING THE REACTION ZONE, AND THE SECOND CONICAL WALL DEFINING THE ADIABATIC EXPANSION ZONE ALL BEING AXIALLY DISPOSED WITH RESPECT OT THE STEAM-JET INJECTON NOZZLE THE LENGTH OF THE ADIABATIC EXPANSION ZONE AND THE RATIO OF THE CROSS-SECTIONAL AREAS OF THE UPPER END TO THAT OF THE LOWER END OF THE ADIABATIIC EXPANSION ZONE BEING SUFFICIENT TO PERMIT ADIABATIC EXPANSION OF THE HOT CHLORODIFLUOROMETHANE-STEAM RECATION GASES WHICH EXIT FROM THE REACTION ZONE.