Quantitative Measurements of Reaction Kinetics

To validate the utility of this reactor system for quantitative measurements of reaction kinetics, we evaluated the cumulative impact of errors introduced by the various system components. For this illustration, the variabilities in the pump flow rates, the initial reactant sample concentrations, and the reactor effluent analysis are included. Uncertainties in other process parameters (such as the reaction temperature) that may affect the measured rate are assumed to be negligible. 

According to the literature for the syringe pumps, the flow reproducibility is 5%. Assuming that this corresponds to the 95% confidence interval based on a set of five measurements with a normal distribution, the standard deviation for this distribution corresponds to 4.0% of the mean flow rate. For this analysis, the mean measured in those reproducibility tests is assumed to coincide with the set point. 

We quantified the accuracy and precision of the automated sample preparation system by preparing samples of various quantities of water and weighing those samples after each addition of water. The data for the amount metered using the 

Finally, five replicate LC analyses with the two LC test components gave sample standard deviations of 5.6% and 5.4% for the two components. Assuming this 

Error of sample mean relative to target Sample standard deviation relative to sample mean -3.3% -1.9% 0.3% 0.1% -1.4% 0.1% -0.4% 0.02% 

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