Process for recovery of nickel from a deactivated hydrocyanation catalyst

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS OF HYDROCYANATING AN ETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED MONONIRTILE OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF 3-PENETENE-NITRILE AND 4-PENTENENITRILE IN THE PRESENCE OF A NICKEL CATALYST CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A ZEROVALENT NICKEL COMPLEX OF AN ORGANIC PHOSPHORUS COMPOUND OF THE FORMULA PZ3, WHEREIN PZ3, IS AN ORGANIC PHOSPHORUS COMPOUND OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF TRIPHENYL PHOSPHITE TRI(M-TOLY)PHOSPHITE, TRI(PTOLYL)PHOSPHITE AND TRI(MIXED M AND P-TOLYL)PHOSPHITES, AND A CATALYST PROMOTER, THE PROMOTER BEING A COMPOUND CONTAINING A CATION OF A METAL OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF ZINC, CADMIUM, TITANIUM, TIN, CHROMIUM, IRON AND COBALT AND AN ANION OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF CHLORIDE, BROMIDE AND IODIDE, ANIONS OF LOWER FATTY ACIDS OF FROM 2-7 CARBON ATOMS, HPO3--,H2PO2-, CF3COO-, CH7H15OSO2- AND SO4--, THE AMOUNT OF PROMOTER BEING IN A MOLE RATIO OF ABOUT 1:16 TO 50:1 IN RESPECT TO THE CATALYST, WHEREIN DURING THE PROCESS OF HYDROCYANATING A PORTION OF THE NICKEL CATALYST BECOMES DEGRADED; PRODUCING A PRODUCT FLUID CONTAINING ORGANIC DINITRILES, UNREACTED ORGANIC MONOITRILES, ORGANIC PHOSPORUS COMPOUNDS OF THE FORMULA PZ3 AND ZEROVALENT NICKEL COMPLEXES OF PZ3, RESIDUAL CATALYST PROMOTER AND DEGRADED NICKEL CATALYST AND SEPARATING ORGANIC PHOSPOROUS COMPOUNDS OF THE FORMULA PZ3 AND ZEROVALENT NICKEL COMPLEXES OF PZ3, ORGANIC DINITRILES AND UNREACTED ORGANIC MONOITRILES FROM THE PRODUCT FLUID AND FROM THE DEGRADED NICKEL CATALYST, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES CHARGING TO A REACTOR THE DEGRADED NICKEL CATALYST, AN ORGANIC NITRILE OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF 3-PENTENENITRILE, 4-PENTENENITRILE, ADIPONITRILE, METHYLGLUTARONITRILE AND ETHYL SUCCINONITRILE IN AN AMOUNT OF AT LEAST 5 MOLES OF ORGANIC NITRILE PER MOLE OF NICKEL IN THE DEGRADED NICKEL CATALYST, AN ORGANIC PHOSPHORUS COMPOUND OF THE FORMULA PZ3 IN AMOUNT TO PROVIDE A PZ3/NICKEL MOLE RATIO AT LEAST AS GREAT AS THAT IN THE ORIGINAL ZEROVALENT NICKEL COMPLEX OF PZ3, AND A FINELY DIVIDED REDUCING METAL OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF NA, LI, MG, CA, BA, SR, TI, V, FE, CO, CU, SN, CD, A1, GA, IN, SM, PB AND TH IN AT LEAST A STOICHIOMETRIC AMOUNT BASED ON THE AMOUNT OF NICKEL TO BE REDUCED, AND MAINTAINING THE REACTION MIXTURE AT A TEMPERATURE IN THE RANGE OF 60*-140*C, TO REGENERATE THE ZEROVALENT NICKEL COMPLEX OF PZ3.