Potential uses of oscillatory baffled reactors for biofuel production

Masngut, Nasratun; Harvey, Adam P.; Ikwebe, Joseph

doi:10.4155/bfs.10.38

Cited by 30 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…Intensification has subsequently been demonstrated for heat exchange [23], fermentation [24], crystallization [25], biodiesel and biofuels production (e.g. [26]), water treatment using ozone [27], suspension polymerisation [28] and biolubricant synthesis [29]. These 'oscillatory baffled reactors' (OBRs) have also been scaled down to mL/hr throughputs for process development and reaction screening applications [30].…”

Section: Figure 2 Coiled Flow Inverter (Cfi) With a Single 90° Invermentioning

confidence: 99%

Oscillatory fluid motion unlocks plug flow operation in helical tube reactors at lower Reynolds numbers (Re ≤ 10)

McDonough

Murta

Law

et al. 2019

Chemical Engineering Journal

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Flow in helical tubes exhibits plug flow characteristics above a critical flow rate due to the formation of Dean vortices. In this study, we report the novel use of oscillatory flow inside coiled tubes to achieve high degrees of plug flow at lower flow rates. The plug flow enhancement appeared to 'switch-on' then 'switch-off' as the oscillation intensity was increased, corresponding to 'oscillatory Dean numbers' of Deo = 70-200, where secondary instabilities are expected. It is believed that oscillatory motion leads to the periodic formation and unravelling of Dean vortices. For a 5 mm tube diameter, the effects of radius of curvature (12.5-32.5 mm), tube pitch (7.5-12.5 mm), net flow rate (Ren = 10-50), oscillation frequency (2-8 Hz) and oscillation amplitude (1-8 mm) were studied. The prototype helical coil reactors were rapidly manufactured using 3D printing. The optimal conditions for plug flow corresponded to Deo/Ren = 2-8, at Strouhal numbers in the range St = 1-2. Plug flow was observed at net flow Reynolds numbers at least as low as Ren = 10, compared to Ren = 70-300 in the literature for coiled tubes subjected to steady flows.Graphical Abstract:

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Section: Figure 2 Coiled Flow Inverter (Cfi) With a Single 90° Invermentioning

confidence: 99%

Oscillatory fluid motion unlocks plug flow operation in helical tube reactors at lower Reynolds numbers (Re ≤ 10)

McDonough

Murta

Law

et al. 2019

Chemical Engineering Journal

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“…Typical chemical processes can take anywhere from fractions of a second to many hours in a conventional reactor. The process advantages of OBRs have been investigated and described for a range of applications including biofuel production [55,56], flotation [34], butylation of phenylacetonitrile [57], oil droplet breakage [58][59][60], photo-oxidation [61,62], polymerization [63] and extensive work on crystallization [64 -71]. However, this review aims to target bioprocesses; so chemical reactions will not be discussed in any further detail.…”

Section: Multi-orifice Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Acetone, butanol and ethanol (ABE) fermentation and bioethanol production have been extensively covered in a previous review [56] and so will not be discussed in any further detail. No data currently exist for anaerobic digestion using OBRs as the reference is to a patent pending [78].…”

Section: Anaerobic Bioprocessesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biological processing in oscillatory baffled reactors: operation, advantages and potential

Harvey

et al. 2013

Interface Focus.

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The development of efficient and commercially viable bioprocesses is essential for reducing the need for fossil-derived products. Increasingly, pharmaceuticals, fuel, health products and precursor compounds for plastics are being synthesized using bioprocessing routes as opposed to more traditional chemical technologies. Production vessels or reactors are required for synthesis of crude product before downstream processing for extraction and purification. Reactors are operated either in discrete batches or, preferably, continuously in order to reduce waste, cost and energy. This review describes the oscillatory baffled reactor (OBR), which, generally, has a niche application in performing ‘long’ processes in plug flow conditions, and so should be suitable for various bioprocesses. We report findings to suggest that OBRs could increase reaction rates for specific bioprocesses owing to low shear, good global mixing and enhanced mass transfer compared with conventional reactors. By maintaining geometrical and dynamic conditions, the technology has been proved to be easily scaled up and operated continuously, allowing laboratory-scale results to be easily transferred to industrial-sized processes. This is the first comprehensive review of bioprocessing using OBRs. The barriers facing industrial adoption of the technology are discussed alongside some suggested strategies to overcome these barriers. OBR technology could prove to be a major aid in the development of commercially viable and sustainable bioprocesses, essential for moving towards a greener future.

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“…Ultimately, the continuous transesterification process presented in this study in the OBR unit showed less time needed and milder operation conditions to achieve 96% compared to previous studies. It was reported that batch reactors do not exhibit perfect mixing, so are operated at reaction times of typically 2 h (within longer batch cycles) 50 . In addition, with its narrow residence time distribution, the OBR has the potential to allow various staged additions and parameter profiles along its length.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of dolomite catalyst in biodiesel production via transesterification of waste cooking oil in oscillatory baffled reactor

et al. 2022

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Biodiesel has recently gained popularity due to its environmental issues and the fact that it is generated from renewable resources. However, the cost of the synthesis of biodiesel is the major impediment to commercialization. The utilization of leftover cooking oils as raw material, the adaptation of a continuous transesterification process, and the use of cheap catalysts are the major possibilities for investigating the cost of biodiesel. In this work, a dolomite catalyst was prepared from natural dolomite rocks and used for the evaluation of continuous transesterification of biodiesel from oleic acid as a model compound of waste cooking oil (WCO). The dolomite catalyst was prepared by activation under vacuum at a surface area of 34.5 m 2 /g. The characterization tests showed good thermal stability of the catalyst and evolution of the CaO and MgO compounds at high concentrations. A kinetic study was conducted to obtain kinetic parameters of catalytic transesterification of the WCO. The kinetic experiments were carried out at 298-333 K, and residence time up to 80 min. The results presented that the catalytic transesterification is the first-order reaction, and the activation energy was 43 kJ/mol. The oscillatory baffled reactor (OBR) was used to evaluate the dolomite catalyst for the continuous production of biodiesel via transesterification. The evaluation study was conducted at a methanol: oil mole ratio of 6:1 and the effect of different operation variables on oleic acid conversion to biodiesel was studied. These variables were temperature (323, 333, and 343 K), residence times (5-40 min), the amplitude of oscillation (2-8 mm), and frequency of oscillation (1,2,3,4, and 4.3 Hz). The results showed an outstanding performance and stable activity of the dolomite catalyst as a conversion of 96% was obtained at 333 K, 4.3 Hz, 8 mm amplitude, and 40 min residence time.

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Potential uses of oscillatory baffled reactors for biofuel production

Cited by 30 publications

References 68 publications

Oscillatory fluid motion unlocks plug flow operation in helical tube reactors at lower Reynolds numbers (Re ≤ 10)

Oscillatory fluid motion unlocks plug flow operation in helical tube reactors at lower Reynolds numbers (Re ≤ 10)

Biological processing in oscillatory baffled reactors: operation, advantages and potential

Use of dolomite catalyst in biodiesel production via transesterification of waste cooking oil in oscillatory baffled reactor

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Potential uses of oscillatory baffled reactors for biofuel production

Cited by 30 publications

References 68 publications

Oscillatory fluid motion unlocks plug flow operation in helical tube reactors at lower Reynolds numbers (Re ≤ 10)

Oscillatory fluid motion unlocks plug flow operation in helical tube reactors at lower Reynolds numbers (Re ≤ 10)

Biological processing in oscillatory baffled reactors: operation, advantages and potential

Use of dolomite catalyst in biodiesel production via transesterification of waste cooking oil in oscillatory baffled reactor

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Product

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Oscillatory fluid motion unlocks plug flow operation in helical tube reactors at lower Reynolds numbers (Re ≤ 10)

Oscillatory fluid motion unlocks plug flow operation in helical tube reactors at lower Reynolds numbers (Re ≤ 10)