(7d) Microreaction Technology and Its Route to Production Plant

Microreaction technology has proven its added value in the R&D department of large chemical companies for the synthesis of new molecules and the development of new reaction pathways. This market remains a low volume market today (about 10 M ? for MRT modules and systems). The stake for the development of microreaction market lies in the transfer of the technology from lab use to large scale chemical productions.

This paper will thus be dedicated to the presentation of the expected implementation of microreaction technologies for production purpose. We will higlight the advantages perceived for MRT both from a technological and economical point of view. We will also illustrate remaining hurdles.

Our analysis will be illustrated by specific case studies of MRT early adopters in the chemical industry. We will present how large chemical companies are working with microreactors and what evolution occurred in the past 5 years.

This new trend has led to an evolution in the MRT market structuration. Several companies have entered the field recently with a new business model. They are not providing microstructured parts but rather enabling technologies for a better and more efficient use of microreactors. We will thus present players and products designed for large scale production, as well as companies whose business model is to support and engineer microreaction plants for large scale production.

As a conclusion, we will present the expected future evolution of the MRT field.