Chemical Process Intensification with Pressure-Tunable Media

Abstract

Pressure-tunable reaction media possess unique tunability of the physical and transport properties. This manuscript highlights how such media may be exploited for developing resource-efficient chemical technologies characterized by process intensification, high product selectivity, enhanced safety and facile separation steps. Alternative technology conceptsfor p-xylene oxidation and ozonolysis that employ pressuretunable media to demonstrate such process attributes are highlighted. Techno-economic and life cycle analyses reveal that the alternative processes possess process, economic and environmental benefits relative to incumbent technologies. Process intensification allows modularization of reactors and other unit operations, which is especially well suited for processing stranded or distributed resources such as biomass and shale gas to produce fuels and chemical intermediates.