Catalytic Reactors and Processes

Catalysis plays a significant role in chemical reactions, leading to more efficient and greener options. In industry, the oxidation of primary and secondary alcohols to the corresponding carbonyl compounds are generally carried out using batch reactors and toxic inorganic oxidants. In line with process intensification principles we develop safe oxidations in flow using pure oxygen, which is a green oxidant, and environment-friendly catalysts. This is achieved by membrane reactors that allow controlled dosing of oxygen into the organics, without dispersing one phase into the other. One of the aims is to intensify reactions that suffer from high mass transfer resistances. Modelling and experiments are utilised and since the phenomena interact at all length scales, we also study simultaneous catalyst and process design approaches. This allows us to find optimum catalyst attributes and chemical routes by considering a holistic process design approach and to optimize process performance indicators.

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