Process for the preparation of fatty acid nitriles and glycerol from glycerides

A process for the production of glycerol and fatty acid nitrile from the reaction of glyceride with ammonia, said process comprising:

• reacting a bath of mono-, di-, or tri-glyceride or mixture thereof having alkyl or olefinically unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbon or monohydroxyalkyl or monohydroxyalkene radicals of 3 to 23 carbon atoms with a flow of ammonia in an amount of at least 200 liters per kilgram of said glyceride per hour in a reaction zone at a temperature of 220.degree. to 300.degree. C. in the presence of a metal salt of a carboxylic or sulfonic acid or a diorganotin(IV) bissulfonate catalyst wherein said diorganotin catalyst is of the formula
• (R.sup.4)(R.sup.5)Sn.sup.2+ [(OSO.sub.2 R.sup.6).sup.- ].sub.2
• in which R.sup.4, R.sup.5 and R.sup.6, are identical or different, and are alkyl, aryl, alkyl-substituted aryl, aralkyl or cycloalkyl, thereby forming an effluent product mixture comprising glycerol, water, and fatty acid nitrile containing fatty acid and fatty acid amide, said fatty acid nitrile, fatty acid, and fatty acid amide all having said radicals of 3 to 23 carbon atoms,
• conveying the resulting effluent product mixture to a separating zone, wherein said fatty acid nitrile containing fatty acid and fatty acid amide is separated from the product mixture and returned to the reaction zone while the reaction between said glyceride and the ammonia is still proceeding at 220.degree. to 300.degree. C., and continuing to maintain the temperature range of 220.degree. to 300.degree. C. until the batch of said glyceride is essentially used up and the effluent product mixture becomes essentially free of glycerol,
• subsequently, continuing the return of fatty acid nitrile containing fatty acid and fatty acid amide to the reaction zone while decreasing the flow of ammonia to the amount of 5 to 150 liters per kilogram of the total fatty acid nitrile containing fatty acid and fatty acid amide in the reaction zone, per hour, and adjusting the temperature to 240.degree. to 320.degree. C., until essentially all of the fatty acid and fatty acid amide have been converted to fatty acid nitrile, while conveying the fatty acid nitrile product to the separating zone, and
• recovering fatty acid nitrile and glycerol from said separating zone.