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The peroxide process produces hydrazine, used as a chemical intermediate and rocket propellant. It reacts hydrogen peroxide with ammonia in the presence of a ketone. The process is more environmentally friendly than the Raschig process, which creates salt as a byproduct. Hydrazine is used in the production of blowing agents, as a gas scavenger, in agriculture and water treatment, and in medical research. It is highly reactive and toxic, so rarely used directly in commercial or consumer products.
The peroxide process is a method of producing hydrazine, a highly reactive and unstable molecule of nitrogen and hydrogen. It has the chemical composition N2H4. Hydrazine is used as a chemical intermediate for the manufacture of a wide range of chemicals, for blowing foams used in automobile floors and seats, and as a rocket propellant.
Hydrogen peroxide reacts with ammonia in the peroxide process. This reaction is typically performed in the presence of a ketone such as acetone or methyl ethyl ketone. Different intermediate chemicals are produced depending on the ketones used. All lead to the formation of hydrazine, water and ketone, which can be recycled in the process.
The original process for producing hydrazine was the Raschig process, named after the German chemist Friedrich Raschig. Hydrazine was first synthesized in the late 1880s. The Raschig processes use a reaction of ammonia with sodium hypochlorite, or bleach, to form a chemical intermediate called chloramine. A second reaction of chloramine with more ammonia and sodium hypochlorite creates hydrazine. This process has become less popular due to the large amounts of salt created as a byproduct, which can create potential disposal problems.
The peroxide process is more environmentally friendly because no salt is created during the production of hydrazine. Additionally, the ketone needed for the reaction is recreated as a by-product and can be recycled at the start of the process. The ketones also do not mix with the hydrazine and aqueous reaction solution, which makes separation a much easier task in the peroxide process.
A highly reactive chemical, hydrazine is useful as a chemical intermediate and as a rocket propellant. For more than two decades, starting in the 1950s, the majority of hydrazine production was used for rocket propellant, as countries developed space launch technologies. Hydrogen peroxide can also be used to propel rockets. The energy developed by hydrazine, however, is much greater than hydrogen peroxide, so rocket systems used hydrazine more frequently.
Hydrazine is widely used as a chemical intermediate for the production of blowing agents. Foaming agents are used to create foams for vinyl flooring and automotive seat cushions, with many other uses. However, hydrazine is rarely used directly in the manufacture of commercial or consumer products, due to its instability and high toxicity.
Oxygen can be a contaminant in some chemical reactions. Hydrazine can be used as a gas scavenger, which will react rapidly with any traces of oxygen in a system. Scavengers are also useful for removing contaminants that can cause corrosion of process equipment and pipelines. Hydrazine is also a major component in the production of agricultural fertilizers and herbicides and is used in commercial water treatment. Medical research and cancer treatments have demonstrated success using hydrazine-derived products.
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