Reaction and Process Monitoring
Knowledge of the reaction progress and composition of complex mixtures, for example in a stirred tank reactor or a distillation column, is of great importance for the optimization and resource-saving design of a process engineering process. In contrast to other analytical methods, nuclear NMR spectroscopy enables a non-invasive and direct quantitative determination of complex multicomponent mixtures without calibration. With a bypass approach, NMR spectroscopy is ideally suited for the continuous analysis of reactions and processes in real time. Benchtop NMR spectrometers specifically can be brought very close to the process to be analyzed due to their compact design.
Development and Characterization of Fixed-Bed Reactors for Gas-Liquid Reactions
For the design of heterogeneously catalyzed chemical production processes, knowledge of the reaction kinetics and the occurrence of possible by-products is of crucial importance. The multiphase trickle bed reactors commonly used in industry are currently difficult to replicate on a laboratory scale. The aim of this research is to develop and use a reactor concept that correctly reproduces the fluid dynamics in fixed-bed reactors in particular, thus enabling the scalability of the kinetic data.
Process Monitoring in Batch Distillation Plants
Information from inside distillation columns can be used to draw conclusions about anomalies in the process. NMR spectroscopy enables non-invasive and direct quantitative determination of complex multicomponent mixtures without calibration and is thus ideally suited for application purposes in the field of real-time reaction and process monitoring. Benchtop NMR spectrometers, in particular, can be incorporated into complex equipment to provide direct process analysis.
