(567b) Ultra-Low-Cost Continuous Manufacturing Platforms through 3D Printing and Telescoped Isolation Free Purification
AIChE Annual Meeting
2019
2019 AIChE Annual Meeting
Topical Conference: Next-Gen Manufacturing
3D Printing Fundamental and Applications
Wednesday, November 13, 2019 - 3:55pm to 4:15pm
Chemically
resistant parts for continuous flow chemistry have been produced using the 3D
printing process fused deposition modelling (FDM), from poly(etheretherketone) (PEEK). PEEK has greater chemical
resistance than common FDM materials such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene
(ABS), polypropylene (PP), or even high-performance plastics like poly(etherimide) (PEI), and also has good thermal resistance and
excellent mechanical strength. These printed parts have been demonstrated to be
capable of withstanding high pressures, allowing the superheating of solvents
for optimal reaction conditions. The ability to use FDM for these reactors
allows highly customisable, cost effective flow reactors to be produced
directly in the laboratory and integrated into equipment already available. The
integration of complicated internal structures, difficult to produce with
powder bed fusion or resin photo-curing techniques such as selective laser
melting (SLM) or stereo lithography (SL), was also possible with FDM, and
allowed structures as small as 0.5 mm to be produced reliably within the
reactor internal channels. These integrated elements were shown to enhance
reaction mixing and the efficiency of liquid-liquid extractions, improving
reaction throughput. The printed reactors were used for flow chemistry and then
integrated with continuous liquid-liquid extraction followed by continuous
phase separation or isolation free continuous crystallisation within an
agitated bed crystalliser. The phase
separator is a compact and easily scalable setup, at a fraction of the cost of
current commercial systems, requiring only simple back pressure control. The
agitated bed allows continuous purification via
crystallisation on a suspended seed bed, with the option to perform solvent
swap as a final step if required. When combined with the printed reactors a
customisable synthesis path results, allowing low cost integrated isolation
free purification with continuous flow chemistry.
resistant parts for continuous flow chemistry have been produced using the 3D
printing process fused deposition modelling (FDM), from poly(etheretherketone) (PEEK). PEEK has greater chemical
resistance than common FDM materials such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene
(ABS), polypropylene (PP), or even high-performance plastics like poly(etherimide) (PEI), and also has good thermal resistance and
excellent mechanical strength. These printed parts have been demonstrated to be
capable of withstanding high pressures, allowing the superheating of solvents
for optimal reaction conditions. The ability to use FDM for these reactors
allows highly customisable, cost effective flow reactors to be produced
directly in the laboratory and integrated into equipment already available. The
integration of complicated internal structures, difficult to produce with
powder bed fusion or resin photo-curing techniques such as selective laser
melting (SLM) or stereo lithography (SL), was also possible with FDM, and
allowed structures as small as 0.5 mm to be produced reliably within the
reactor internal channels. These integrated elements were shown to enhance
reaction mixing and the efficiency of liquid-liquid extractions, improving
reaction throughput. The printed reactors were used for flow chemistry and then
integrated with continuous liquid-liquid extraction followed by continuous
phase separation or isolation free continuous crystallisation within an
agitated bed crystalliser. The phase
separator is a compact and easily scalable setup, at a fraction of the cost of
current commercial systems, requiring only simple back pressure control. The
agitated bed allows continuous purification via
crystallisation on a suspended seed bed, with the option to perform solvent
swap as a final step if required. When combined with the printed reactors a
customisable synthesis path results, allowing low cost integrated isolation
free purification with continuous flow chemistry.
Scheme 1.
(Top) 3DP reactor followed by 3DP workup stage and continuous flow phase
separation in phase separator. (Bottom) 3DP reactor followed by confined
suspension crystalliser