AM Technology has recently developed a flow reactor that is flexible and capable of handling problem fluids at low throughputs.
The design, referred to as the Coflore agitated cell reactor (ACR), is for throughputs of 5g to 5,000g per hour.
By using dynamic mixing and multiple reaction cells, the ACR can maintain good plug flow and efficient mixing independent of throughput.
The use of cells as opposed to narrow channels also improves the reactor's tolerance to solids.
The first live chemistry trials on an ACR have recently been completed at Imperial College in London.
For these experiments, the third and fourth Bourne reactions were used.
Being mixing sensitive reactions, these are good test methods for flow reactors.
The results showed dramatic improvements for the ACR in terms of flexibility and reduced pressure drop when compared to a static mixer reactor.
