Alfa Laval premiered a reactor technology that allows manufacturers to go from batch processing to continuous production of chemicals. The ART plate reactor allows faster scale-up, improved yield and provides better control of the reaction compared to classic stirred-tank reactors. ART combines the properties of a continuous chemical reactor with those of a plate heat exchanger. It contains flow-directing reactor plates that are sandwiched between heat transfer plates, held together by pressure plates to create a modular reactor unit. Ports along the reaction channel provide access to the reaction mixture for measurement, sampling and reactant addition. The plate reactor can be disassembled and reassembled quickly allowing easy cleaning. The mechanical design of the reactor allows for reaction at elevated temperature and pressure. The product range has capacities from 0.25 l/h up to 1 m3/h covering all steps from laboratory scale R&D to full production. There are several advantages with this technology. The high heat transfer of a plate heat exchanger is combined with efficient mixing producing reliable reaction control in one unit.
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