PROCESS FOR MAKING 1,2-DICHLOROETHANE

1. An improved process for making 1,2-dichloroethane by reacting ethylene and chlorine in a reaction zone having a liquid medium containing chlorinated C2 -hydrocarbons circulated therein in the presence of a customary chlorination-including catalyst and optionally an inhibitor reducing the formation of by-products, wherein a) approximately equimolar proportions of ethylene and chlorine are introduced into the circulated liquid medium, the whole is mixed, and the mixture is reacted in a reaction zone at a temperature of about 75-200 degrees C under a pressure of about 1-15 bars, and during a mean sojourn time of the mixture in the mixing and reaction zone of about 1-15 hours ; wherein b) a portion of the liquid reaction mixture is removed from the reaction zone and subdivided into two partial streams, of which one is passed through a heat exchanger for dissipation of calorific energy and recycled at reduced temperature to the mixing and reaction zone, whilst the second partial stream is introduced into an expansion vessel in which a proportion adequate to the reaction product formed in the reaction zone is evaporated from the said second partial stream, the resulting vapors are introduced into a fractionating column and 1,2-dichloroethane is distillatively separated, whereas the unevaporated liquid fraction of the second partial stream is recycled into the liquid medium circulated in the mixing and reaction zone, which comprises preparing the 1,2-dichloroethane inside a double loop reactor by A) introducing ethylene through line (1) and chlorine gas through line (2) into the ascending portion of loop (I) below the mixing zone (3) in the asending portion and finely distributing them in the liquid medium circulated through loop (I), and then reacting the reaction components in reaction zone (4) and sojourn zone (5), respectively, following mixing zone (3), and B) removing from loop (I) two partial streams of reaction mixture, of which one is introduced through line (8) into heat exchanger (10) for dissipation of calorific energy and recycled through line (9) into the descending portion of loop (I) whilst the second partial stream is introduced into loop (II) integrally connected to loop (I) and into expansion zone (6) provided in loop cycle (II), in which a proportion of reaction product adequate to the reaction product formed in reaction zone (4) is evaporate from said second partial stream, the resulting vapors are delivered through line (7) to the fractio