Integrated Microreactor System for Gas-Phase Catalytic Reactions. 1. Scale-up Microreactor Design and Fabrication

Abstract

The design and fabrication of a gas-phase microreactor that is based upon a multilayer laminate microelectronics structure is described. The reactor is a key component in an integrated system whose platform utilizes a commercial computer chassis with modular boards to perform the required process functions. The design combines knowledge from earlier laminate microstructures with new prototyping concepts for incorporation of various on-board devices. A 3-D finite element simulation model was used to identify various design improvements. The final device contains two parallel reaction channels on a chiplike die in which a 1 μm platinum film catalyst is deposited on the underside of a silicon nitride membrane. Seven platinum heaters and temperature sensors are evenly distributed along the top side of the silicon nitride membrane. Electrical contacts for the on-board control and sensing devices are achieved through various pins that are distributed around the reactor die. The experience and knowledge gained in developing the final reactor device is utilized in Part 2 of this series for reactor packaging and development of the integrated system modules.

Tandem, Effective Continuous Flow Process for the Epoxidation of Cyclohexene

“…The initial spark for the investigation of process intensification was given by Ramshaw et al , Considerable efforts have been put into the application of microflow system (MFS) in organic chemistry and analytic chemistry . Following the inspiring contributions by Jensen et al and Hessel et al, , various applications of MFS appeared in the literature in the recent years. − The excellent mass and heat transfer can be achieved by virtue of enhanced surface-to-volume ratio. With the aid of precise temperature and efficient mixing control, the reaction can be completed within a shorter time to obtain better yields and excellent diastereoselectivity .…”

Novel Process Windows for Enabling, Accelerating, and Uplifting Flow Chemistry

“…The design of an integrated microreactor system was motivated by fabrication, assembly, and system integration concepts known in microelectronics and the computer industry 162–164…”

Single-phase fluid flow distribution and heat transfer in microstructured reactors

“…Packaging materials likewise may be selected to either facilitate or hinder heat removal to further manipulate system thermal efficiency (Moreno et al, 2008). Microreactors have been fabricated from a variety of substrates ranging from high thermal conductivity materials such as silicon (Srinivas et al, 2004;Tiggelaar et al, 2005;Quiram et al, 2007), aluminum (Rebrov et al, 2001(Rebrov et al, , 2003bIsmagilov et al, 2008), molybdenum (Mies et al, 2004(Mies et al, , 2007b to low thermal conductivity ceramics (Alm et al, 2005(Alm et al, , 2007Mitchell and Kenis, 2006;Schmitt et al, 2005) and glass (Dietrich et al, 2005). Microreactors with non-insulating packaging and high thermal conductivity materials were applied for isothermal and safe operation of highly exothermic reactions: a singlet oxygen generator (Hill et al, 2007), direct hydrogen peroxide synthesis (Inoue et al, 2007) and isothermal kinetic studies: CO oxidation (Ajmera et al, 2002(Ajmera et al, , 2003Srinivas et al, 2004), ammonia oxidation (Rebrov et al 2001(Rebrov et al , 2002(Rebrov et al , 2003b, water gas shift reaction (Rebrov et al, 2007c), complete oxidation of n-butane, ethanol, isopropanol, and 1,1-dimethylhydrazine (Ismagilov et al, 2008), complete oxidation of propane (Men et al, 2009) and preferential CO oxidation (F. Nikolaidis et al, 2009;Vahabi and Akbari, 2009).…”