Reactors Employed in the Fine-chemical Industry

The above discussion indicates the importance of the size of the catalyst particles-a very small size is required if a technically useful rate of production is to be achieved. The range of sizes of the catalyst particles that can be employed is, however, dominated by the reactor in which the catalyst must operate. Most of the reactions performed in the fine-chemical industry involve liquid-phase processes, normally reactions between two different dissolved compounds. Often one of the reactants is a gaseous compound, which dissolves in the liquid and migrates to the surface 

Integration of the reactor and the catalyst can be very advantageous. In the fine-chemical industry this integration usually entails application of catalysts as relatively thin layers on non-porous solid surfaces [2-4]. Although such reactors are currently almost exclusively used for treatment of exhaust gas, application in the fine-chemical industry provides interesting possibilities. 

---