Comparative Study of Batch and Continuous Flow Reactors in Selective Hydrogenation of Functional Groups in Organic Compounds: What Is More Effective?

Abstract

Many research papers describe selective hydrogenation of functional groups, such as nitro groups, carbonyl groups, or unsaturated carbon bonds to obtain fine chemicals or precursors of pharmaceuticals. Quite often, the catalyst performance is investigated in batch or continuous flow reactors without finding advantages and disadvantages of this or that regime. At the same time, the transition from batch processes to continuous flow occurs on the industrial scale. However, the batch process can be preferable for some reactions, in spite of its drawbacks. This review article aims to identify all publications that consider selective hydrogenation of functional groups in organic compounds, both in batch and continuous flow reactors, at the same reaction conditions that allow making conclusions about the benefits of one of the regimes in a particular case.

Heteroatom Lewis acid zeolites: synthesis, characterization and application in the conversion of biomass-derived oxygenates

“…Therefore, industrial processes typically prefer liquid-phase hydrogenation, using copper–chromium oxide as the catalyst. 162 However, the high toxicity of chromium causes significant environmental issues, which violate the twelve “Principles of Green Chemistry”. In addition, improving the solubility of H 2 in the solvent is desirable for H 2 to reach the catalyst surface, which requires large volumes of H 2 due to mass transfer constraints.…”

Hydroprocessing of biomass feedstock over sulfided CoMo-, NiMo-, and NiW-supported catalysts for bio-jet fuel component production: a review

“…As is known, xed-bed reactors have some advantages in comparison to batch autoclaves such as better mixing of reagents, excellent interfacial mass and energy transfer properties, lower operational costs, suppression of byproduct formation through better control of the reaction parameters, simplied scaling up, and improved process safety. 85,86 PS, the non-edible solid fraction of palm oil, is a promising feedstock for the production of transportation fuel due to its lower price in comparison to cooking oils and no food-fuel competition. 87,88 Before the catalytic experiments, the catalyst was dried in the reactor at 175 °C for 5 h. Aer that, the catalyst was sulded employing the procedure described in Table 6.…”

Mediated electron transfer in a photo-bioreactor: continuous flow hydroxylation using cytochrome P450 BM3 in NADPH-free conditions

“…Compared to batch reactors, they offer higher productivity, improved reaction efficiency, and reduced waste generation. 48–50 Packed bed reactors, in particular, have gained increasing attention due to their ability to handle large enzyme loading capacity, enabling efficient biocatalytic reactions. 51–53 The implementation of continuous flow reactors offers a promising approach to overcome substrate solubility challenges by maintaining a constant low substrate concentration in steady-state conditions.…”