Verfahren zur Herstellung von Vinylchlorid

Vinyl chloride is produced from a cracked gas containing acetylene, by thermally cracking hydrocarbons, having at least 2 carbon atoms, by contact with a combustion gas at a temperature at the completion of the cracking of at least 1,200 DEG C., washing the cracked gas at atmospheric pressure with water and kerosene to remove carbon and tar, removing higher acetylenes from the cracked gas by absorption under superatmospheric pressure into kerosene containing no fraction having an initial boiling point less than 150 DEG C., drying the cracked gas and mixing it with at least an equimolar amount of dry hydrogen chloride gas, based on acetylene, passing the gas mixture at 100-180 DEG C. under 3-20 atmospheres over a mercuric-chloride/ active carbon catalyst to convert the acetylene to vinyl chloride, removing remaining hydrogen chloride by washing with water, absorbing the resultant vinyl chloride in kerosene containing no fraction boiling at less than 110 DEG C., and separating the vinyl chloride by boiling the kerosene into which it has been adsorbed. Preferred hydrocarbons are petroleum gas and petroleum naphtha. The spent hydrochlorination catalyst can be regenerated by treatment in situ with chlorine or hydrogen chloride. The waste gas remaining after vinyl chloride has been removed from the reaction gas can be used to strip any acetylene from the kerosene in which the higher acetylenes are absorbed and the resulting gas, which may contain entrained kerosene, used as a fuel gas for the combustion stage. The process is illustrated by reference to drawings (not shown).