[Christian Walsdorff, Lothar Seidemann, Martin Sesing, Martin Fiene, Thomas Grassler, Olga Schubert, Eckhard Stroefer, Martin Sohn] DE Ludwigshafen The invention relates to a process for carrying out exothermic chemical equilibrium reactions in a fluidized-bed reactor, wherein there is a temperature distribution in the fluidized bed of the fluidized-bed reactor and the temperature difference between the lowest temperature and the highest temperature is at least 10 K. The invention further relates to a fluidized-bed reactor for carrying out chemical reactions in a fluidized bed (5), wherein at least one heat exchanger (12, 28) is located in the fluidized bed (5) to control the temperature distribution.

[SCHUBERT, Olga, SESING, Martin, SEIDEMANN, Lothar, KARCHES, Martin, GRASSLER, Thomas, SOHN, Martin] 67056 Ludwigshafen;Alwin-Mittasch-Platz 11 67063 Ludwigshafen;Ostpreussenstr. 7 67165 Waldsee;Gartenfeldstr. 10 68169 Mannheim;Erfensteinstr. 12 67434 Neustadt;Landauer Str. 8 67117 Limburgerhof;Hainbuchstr. 11 35102 Lohra Disclosed is a catalyst for gas phase reactions, which is provided with great mechanical stability and comprises one or several active metals on a carrier containing alumina as a carrier material. Said catalyst is characterized in that the alumina moiety of the carrier is composed substantially of alpha-alumina. Ruthenium, copper, and/or gold is/are the preferred active metal/s used. Particularly preferred inventive catalysts contain a) 0.001 to 10 percent by weight of ruthenium, copper, and/or gold, b) 0 to 5 percent by weight of one or several alkaline earth metals, c) 0 to 5 percent by weight of one or several alkali metals, d) 0 to 10 percent by weight of one or several rare earth metals, e) 0 to 10 percent by weight of one or several other metals selected among the group comprising palladium, platinum, osmium, iridium, silver, and rhenium, the percentages being in relation to the total weight of the catalyst, on the carrier made of alpha Al2O3. The disclosed catalysts are preferably used for the oxidation of hydrogen chloride (Deacon reaction).

[Guido Henze, Heiko Urtel, Martin Sesing, Martin Karches] DE Buerstadt Catalyst comprising ruthenium on a support for the catalytic oxidation of hydrogen chloride by means of oxygen to form chlorine, wherein the catalyst comprises from 0.01 to 10% by weight of silver and/or calcium as dopant.The support preferably consists essentially of alpha-aluminum oxide.The catalyst preferably comprises a) from 0.1 to 10% by weight of ruthenium, b) from 0.01 to 5% by weight of silver and/or from 0.01 to 5% by weight of calcium, c) from 0 to 5% by weight of one or more alkaline earth metals, d) from 0 to 5% by weight of one or more alkali metals, e) from 0 to 5% by weight of one or more rare earth metals, f) from 0 to 5% by weight of one or more further metals selected from the group consisting of nickel, palladium, platinum, iridium and rhenium,in each case based on the total weight of the catalyst.

[SOHN, Martin, STROEFER, Eckhard, SCHUBERT, Olga, GRASSLER, Thomas, FIENE, Martin, SESING, Martin, SEIDEMANN, Lothar, WALSDORFF, Christian] . 67056 Ludwigshafen;Neudorferstr. 8a 68229 Mannheim;Karl-Kuntz-Weg 9 68163 Mannheim;Friedrich-Profit-Str. 10 67063 Ludwigshafen;Landauer Str. 8 67117 Limburgerhof;Ahornweg 10 67150 Niederkirchen;Ostpreussenstr. 7 67165 Waldsee;Gartenfeldstr. 10 68169 Mannheim;Lutherstr. 1 67059 Ludwigshafen The invention relates to a method for carrying out exothermic chemical equilibrium reactions in a fluidized bed reactor, wherein the temperature is distributed across the fluidized bed of the fluidized reactor and the temperature difference between the lowest and the highest temperature is at least 10 K. The invention also relates to a fluidized bed reactor for carrying out chemical reactions in a fluidized bed (5), which is characterized in that at least one heat exchanger (12, 28) is arranged in the fluidized bed (5) for controlling temperature distribution.

[HENZE, Guido, URTEL, Heiko, SESING, Martin, KARCHES, Martin] 67056 Ludwigshafen;Narzissenstrasse 4 68642 Bürstadt;Kreuzstrasse 8 67227 Frankenthal;Ostpreußenstr. 7 67165 Waldsee;Grundwiesenweg 26 67434 Neustadt The invention relates to a catalyst for the catalytic oxidation of hydrogen chloride with oxygen into chlorine, containing ruthenium on a carrier, characterized in that the catalyst contains 0.01 to 10 wt % of silver and/or calcium as (a) doping agent(s). The carrier is preferably made substantially of alpha-aluminum oxide. The catalyst preferably contains a) 0.1 to 10 wt % of ruthenium, b) 0.01 to 5 wt % of silver and/or 0.01 to 5 wt % of calcium, c) 0 to 5 wt % of one or more alkaline earth metals, d) 0 to 5 wt % of one or more alkali metals, e) 0 to 5 wt % of one or more rare earth metals, f) 0 to 5 wt % of one or more additional metals selected from the group consisting of nickel, palladium, platinum, iridium, and rhenium, the percentages being relative to the total weight of the catalyst.

[HENZE, Guido, URTEL, Heiko, SESING, Martin, KARCHES, Martin] 67056 Ludwigshafen;Narzissenstraße 4 68642 Bürstadt;Kreuzstr. 8 67227 Frankenthal;Ostpreußenstr. 7 67165 Waldsee;Grundwiesenweg 26 67434 Neustadt The invention relates to a method for recovering ruthenium from a spent ruthenium-containing catalyst which contains ruthenium in the form of ruthenium oxide on a support material that is poorly soluble in mineral acid. Said method comprises the following steps: a) the catalyst containing ruthenium oxide is reduced in a gas stream containing hydrogen chloride and an optional inert gas at a temperature ranging from 300 to 500°C; b) the catalyst that has been reduced in step a) and contains metallic ruthenium on the poorly soluble support material is treated with hydrochloric acid in the presence of a gas containing oxygen such that the metallic ruthenium on the support is dissolved in the form of ruthenium(III) chloride and is recovered in the form of aqueous ruthenium(III) chloride solution; c) if necessary, the ruthenium(III) chloride solution obtained in step b) is further processed.

[HENZE, Guido, URTEL, Heiko, SESING, Martin, KARCHES, Martin, VAN DEN ABEEL, Peter, THIELE, Kai] 67056 Ludwigshafen;Narzissenstraße 4 68642 Bürstadt;Nibelungenstraße 2 67240 Bobenheim-Roxheim;Ostpreußenstr. 7 67165 Waldsee;Grundwiesenweg 26 67434 Neustadt;Zegersdeef 108 B-2930 Brasschaat;Walenhoek 74 B-2040 Antwerpen The invention relates to a method for the catalytic oxidation of hydrogen chloride with oxygen to form chloride in a fluidized bed method in the presence of a catalyst containing ruthenium on a particulate carrier made of alpha-aluminum oxide having an average particle size of 10 to 200 µm, characterized in that the catalyst carrier has a low surface roughness and can be obtained from a used catalyst, which has been used for at least 500 operating hours in a fluidized bed method.

[KARCHES, Martin, BACHMANN, Kati, SESING, Martin, SEIDEMANN, Lothar, PILZ, Michael] 67056 Ludwigshafen;Grundwiesenweg 26 67434 Neustadt;Walter - Oehmichen Str. 1 68519 Viernheim;Ostpreußenstr. 7 67165 Waldsee;Places Georges Brugman 17 B-1050 Bruxelles;Königsberger Str. 66 69502 Hemsbach The invention relates to a method for producing chlorine by gas phase oxidation of hydrogen chloride on a heterogeneous, particulate catalyzer in a fluidized-bed reactor, obtaining a product gas mixture that is freed of any carried catalyzer particles in cyclones (1) disposed in the upper region of the fluidized-bed reactor, comprising a cylindrical upper part (2) having a tangential or spiral inlet (3) for the product gas mixture and narrowing at the lower end thereof via a conical part (4) into a cyclone downpipe (5), and a central immersion pipe (6) in the upper region of the cyclone (1) for diverting the product gas mixture freed of the carried catalyzer particles, characterized in that – one to seven cascades of two to five cyclones each connected in series are used, wherein the cyclones (1) of each cascade, except for the cyclone (1) first permeated, which is designed that approximately 90 to 99% by weight of the carried catalyst particles are precipitated, each comprise a trickle valve (7) at the lower end of the cyclone downpipe (5) comprising an angled pipe terminator (8) and a loose flap valve (9) suspended at an angle α to the vertical, wherein the angle α and the weight of the flap valve (9) are designed so that the torque of the flap valve (9) based on the diameter of the outlet opening out of the angled pipe terminator (8) is in the range of 2 to 300 N/m2.

[SEIDEMANN, Lothar, KARCHES, Martin, STÜTZER, Dieter, SESING, Martin, SCHUBERT, Olga, URTEL, Heiko] 67056 Ludwigshafen;Gartenfeldstr. 10 68169 Mannheim;Erfensteinstr. 12 67434 Neustadt;Carl-Zimmermann-Str. 21 67373 Dudenhofen;Ostpreussenstr. 7 67165 Waldsee;Alwin-Mittasch-Platz 11 67063 Ludwigshafen;Mollstr. 49A 68165 Mannheim The invention relates to a method for producing chlorine in a fluidized bed reactor, a gaseous reaction mixture containing hydrogen chloride and oxygen flowing from the bottom to the top of a heterogeneous particulate catalyst that forms a fluidized bed. The invention is characterized in that said fluidized bed comprises insertion elements which divide the fluidized bed into a plurality of horizontal and vertical cells arranged in the fluidized bed reactor, the walls of said cells being permeable to gas and having openings for ensuring the exchange of particles of the heterogeneous particulate catalyst in the vertical direction in the range of between 1 and 100 liter(s)/hour per liter of reactor volume.

[HENZE, Guido, URTEL, Heiko, SESING, Martin, KARCHES, Martin, FEHREN, Thorsten von, KUSTURA, Toni] 67056 Ludwigshafen;Narzissenstraße 4 68642 Bürstadt;Nibelungenstraße 2 67240 Bobenheim-Roxheim;Ostpreußenstr. 7 67165 Waldsee;Grundwiesenweg 26 67434 Neustadt;Guntherstr. 16 68642 Bürstadt;Neuwoog 3 67316 Carlsberg The invention relates to a catalyst for gas-phase reactions having high mechanical stability, containing one or more active metals on a substrate containing aluminum oxide as the substrate material, characterized in that the aluminum oxide portion of the substrate is composed substantially of alpha aluminum oxide. Particularly preferred catalysts according to the invention contain a) 0.001 to 10 wt% ruthenium, copper, and/or gold, b) 0.1 to 10 wt% nickel, c) 0 to 5 wt% of one or more alkaline-earth metals, d) 0 to 5 wt% of one or more alkali metals, e) 0 to 5 wt% of one or more rare-earth elements, f) 0 to 5 wt% of one or more other metals, selected from the group comprising palladium, platinum, iridium, and rhenium, in each case relative to the total weight of the catalyst, on the substrate made of alpha-A12O3. The catalysts are preferably used in hydrogen chloride oxidation (Deacon reaction).