Guidance on Safety/Health for Process Intensification Including MS Design Part I: Reaction Hazards

The implementation of process intensification by multiscale equipment will have a profound impact on the way chemicals are produced. The shift to higher spacetime yields, higher temperatures, and a confined reaction volume comprises new risks, such as runaway reactions, decomposition, and incomplete conversion of reactants. Simplified spreadsheet calculations enable an estimation of the expected temperature profiles, conversion rates, and consequences of potential malfunction based on the reaction kinetics. The analysis illustrates that the range of optimal reaction conditions is almost congruent with the danger of an uncontrolled reaction. The risk of a spontaneous reaction with hot spots can be presumed if strong exothermic reactions are carried out in micro-designed reactors. At worst, decomposition follows the runaway reaction with the release of noncondensable gases. Calculations prove that a microreactor is not at risk in terms of overpressure as long as at least one end of the reactor is not blocked.