• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • CommentGo Back
Download
 
 
Scalable flow reactor technology
 
 
vrtvrtvrtvrt
TM
technology
 
vrt
TM
 
technology is an automated and sophisticated plug flow reactor system that enables processesdeveloped using micro reactor systems to be directly scaled to the kilo / plant level. The technology isbroadly applicable for a vast range of chemistry.
vrt
TM
technology enables process optimisation at scale to demonstrate robustness, productivity, safety,quality and economic benefit and provides the basis for a full scale commercial manufacturing designspecification.
vrt
TM
technology has been exemplified for a number of multi-ton commercial products within the FineChemical and Pharmaceutical Manufacturing sectors.
2 / 4
vrt
TM
technology is specifically designed forintermediate scale-up to kilo and pilot plant scaledevelopment.The development of a flow process can be divided intothree distinct stages:-Stage 1: Laboratory Based Experimental DesignStage 2: Intermediate Scale-up Kilo/Plant ScaleStage 3: Full Scale Commercial ManufactureThere are many commercial micro reactor systemsavailable for completing laboratory based experimentaldesign (stage 1). However technology for progressingbeyond the laboratory is less developed.The concept of ‘scaling-out’ or ‘parallelisation’ of microreactor processes has been extensively documentedas an alternative to conventional scale-up, although inreality there are limited real-case examples of thisapproach.‘Parallelisation’, by its very nature, builds complexityinto a process. Whereas a more desirable goal formost organisations would be risk reduction throughsimplicity. The lack of a general purpose scale-up toolfor flow processing is one of the major contributors tosuch processes remaining within the domain of thelaboratory and never realising the advantages ofcontinuous flow.
vrt
TM
technology overcomes this shortcoming becauseit is specifically designed for intermediate scale-up tokilo/pilot plant scale (stage 2) development andprovides the foundation for continuous flow basedcommercial manufacture (stage 3).
Continuous Flow Process Development
 
STAGE 1LaboratoryBasedExperimentalDesignSTAGE 2IntermediateScale-up to Kilo/Pilot Plant ScaleSTAGE 3Full ScaleCommercialManufacture
•
develop the chemistryand outline the process
•
consolidate routeselection
•
carry out initial screeningof the process parameterenvelope
Three Distinct Stages of Development of aFlow Process
•
full-scale commercialmanufacture
•
produce kilo scale quanti-ties of material
•
optimise the process todemonstrate safety,quality, robustness, pro-ductivity and economicbenefit
•
provide the basis for full-scale commercial manu-facturing design specifi-cation
 
 
Initially the process is operatedwith a residence time of 31 units,resulting in over conversion(‘brown’ product).The residence time is reduced to7 units resulting in slight underconversion (‘light blue’ product).Finally the residence time istweaked’ to 9 time units resultingin the desired ‘light green’product.
vrtvrtvrtvrt
TM
Technology Illustration
 
In the graphics, colour represents quality and therequired quality of the output is represented bythe light green.
3 / 4
Variable Residence Time
 
vrt
TM
technology uses well characterisedheat exchangers and conventional staticmixers for achieving the necessary heatand mass transfer required for a flowprocess.The most important parameter for a plugflow process is residence time because thisultimately governs the product compositionand quality. The ability to vary residencetime on-line is extremely desirable becauseit enables rapid optimisation and tuning ofthe process at scale. However, for a staticmixer based reactor, varying residencetime by simply changing flow rate is not anoption because the flow rate governs heatand mass transfer.
vrt
TM
technology overcomes this limitationby enabling residence time within thesystems parameters to be accessedwithout changing flow rate.Stylistically the
vrt
TM
is a static mixer thatcan be stretched or compressed at will toachieve any desirable residence time.
Innovation through Continuous Processing
 
Improving the manufacturing process both economically and sustainably is a primary objective for finechemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing. Continuous flow processing is widely recognised astechnology to achieve this objective.Continuous processing enables cleaner, leaner and more energy efficient processes to be developedand offers substantial investment, technological and safety advantages.
•
Investment Advantages
e.g. low capital costs; small footprint—highthroughput; minimal scale-up problems;improved efficiency; using less raw materials,and lower operational costs
•
Technological Advantages
e.g. safely handle energetic chemistry; developshorter, more economic processes; telescopeprocesses together; readily integrate with real-time monitoring & control (PAT), and deliverhigher yield, higher purity
•
Safety & Environmental Advantages
e.g. small inventory at any one time, reducinghazard & risk; remotely operated plant control;reduced operational exposure; reducedemissions level; more energy efficient, andreduced waste
 
Commercial Process Developed Using
vrtvrtvrtvrt
TM
 
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...