RESUMO
The development of a chemical industry characterized by resource efficiency, in particular with reference to energy use, is becoming a major issue and driver for the achievement of a sustainable chemical production. From an industrial point of view, several application areas, where energy saving and CO2 emissions still represent a major concern, can take benefit from the application of membrane reactors. On this basis, different markets for membrane reactors are analyzed in this paper, and their technical feasibility is verified by proper experimentation at pilot level relevant to the following processes: (i) pure hydrogen production; (ii) synthetic fuels production; (iii) chemicals production. The main outcomes of operations in the selected research lines are reported and discussed, together with the key obstacles to overcome.
RESUMO
1-Alkylbenzenes as a precursor of surfactants, can be produced from ethylene, styrene, and hydrogen. These intermediates, lacking tertiary carbons, are environmentally more benign than commercial ones that bear the aromatic ring linked to an internal carbon of the aliphatic chain. The one-pot synthesis of highly linear 1-alkylbenzenes (LABs) through the homogeneous catalysis of olefin poly-insertion from cheap and largely available reagents can be carried out with a high turnover and selectivity. A purposely designed reactor that allows for the fine control of the three components feed, along with temperature, plays a key role in this achievement. A turnover of 194 g of LABs per mmol of catalyst per hour can be obtained with the simultaneous removal of polyethylene as a by-product.