Issue 4, 2018

From batch to continuous: Au-catalysed oxidation of d-galacturonic acid in a packed bed plug flow reactor under alkaline conditions

Abstract

Currently biomass based conversions are often performed in batch reactors. From an operational and economic point of view the use of a continuous plug flow reactor is preferred. Here we make a back to back comparison of the use of a batch and plug flow reactor for the oxidation of (sodium)-galacturonate to (disodium)-galactarate using a heterogeneous Au-catalyst. We will show that the use of a three phase plug flow reactor results in enhanced O2 mass transfer which resulted in a 10–40 fold increase in productivity (up to 2.2 ton m−3 h−1). However, the product selectivity slightly dropped from >99 mol% in batch (controlled pH) to 94 mol% in packed bed (uncontrolled pH). Both reactors suffer from the low solubility of the reaction product. We will show that this solubility is the most significant challenge for performing this oxidation on industrial scale.

Graphical abstract: From batch to continuous: Au-catalysed oxidation of d-galacturonic acid in a packed bed plug flow reactor under alkaline conditions

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
24 Mar 2018
Accepted
31 May 2018
First published
18 Jun 2018
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY-NC license

React. Chem. Eng., 2018,3, 540-549

From batch to continuous: Au-catalysed oxidation of D-galacturonic acid in a packed bed plug flow reactor under alkaline conditions

F. van der Klis, L. Gootjes, J. van Haveren, D. S. van Es and J. H. Bitter, React. Chem. Eng., 2018, 3, 540 DOI: 10.1039/C8RE00047F

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