An industrial view of process intensification

An integrated approach in chemical research and development, and chemical engineering is currently re-emerging under the label process intensification in academia as well as in industry. The promise of process intensification, as already expressed in the late 1970s, is to significantly increase the economic and ecological efficiency of chemical production routes. However, the rate of adoption in the chemical industry has been generally low and only a few examples have been reported since then. This paper addresses micro process technology, which is recognized as one important approach for process intensification in the chemical and process industry. It is particularly well suited for fast and extremely exothermic reactions enabling almost perfect process control. This feature could pave the way for considerable process improvements with regard to specific applications. A brief illustration of the advantages for gas-phase reactions is given. The incorporation of appropriately designed microstructured catalytic wall reactors within conventional partial oxidation production plants is presented.