Description
In a microreactor, reagent streams are introduced through precision-metered inlet ports and merged at a mixing junction — typically a T-mixer, Y-mixer, or interdigital multi-lamination mixer — before entering the structured reaction channel. Mixing occurs through diffusion, engineered flow patterns (split-and-recombine, chaotic advection), or ultrasonic enhancement, with mixing times as low as 1–10 milliseconds achievable. The reaction channel — which may be serpentine, spiral, or straight depending on residence time requirements — is embedded within a thermally controlled block, maintaining isothermal conditions across the reaction zone with temperature control precision of ±0.5°C or better.
The combination of fast mixing and excellent heat transfer enables access to reaction conditions that are either impractical or hazardous in batch: flash chemistry at −78°C and below, high-temperature superheating above the atmospheric boiling point under pressure, and handling of thermally unstable or highly exothermic reaction intermediates with full safety margin. Residence time control is achieved through channel volume and flow rate, with typical residence windows from 100 milliseconds to 30 minutes. Multi-step synthesis is achievable by connecting microreactor modules in series, with inline reagent addition and quenching at each stage.
Key Features
- Instantaneous heat transfer — ideal for highly exothermic reactions
- Sub-millisecond mixing for fast reaction kinetics
- Precise residence time control via flow rate and channel volume
- Safe handling of toxic, explosive or thermally labile intermediates
- Access to extreme conditions: <-50°C, >250°C, >30 bar
- Modular series connection for multi-step synthesis
- Minimal reagent inventory in reaction zone at any time
- Transparent glass variants for direct in-situ visualisation
Technical Specifications
| Channel Dimensions | 100 µm – 1000 µm (0.1–1.0 mm) internal diameter |
| Materials of Construction | Borosilicate Glass, SS 316L, Hastelloy C-276, PTFE, PFA, Silicon |
| Temperature Range | −100°C to +350°C (material/solvent dependent) |
| Pressure Rating | Up to 100 bar (material dependent) |
| Mixing Time | 1–10 ms (multi-lamination and jet impingement types) |
| Residence Time | 100 ms – 30 min (channel volume × flow rate) |
| Flow Rate Range | 0.01 mL/min – 100 mL/min per channel |
| Thermal Control | ±0.5°C temperature uniformity across reaction zone |
| Scale-Up Route | Numbering-up (parallelisation) to kg/day scale |
| Integration | Compatible with HPLC pumps, syringe pumps, mass flow controllers |
Industrial Applications
- Organolithium and Grignard reactions at low temperature
- Nitration, diazotisation, and other hazardous fast reactions
- Photochemical reactions (with integrated light sources)
- Nanoparticle and API crystallisation under controlled nucleation
- Rapid process development and reaction screening (< 1 g reagent)
- Continuous pharmaceutical synthesis (GMP-compatible designs available)
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Submit your reaction parameters, operating pressure, temperature range, and material compatibility requirements. Our engineering team will recommend the appropriate configuration.