Petrochemistry
Enhanced Security, Efficiency and Sustainability
PetroChemistry
From today’s limitless mobility demands, transportation of goods, the global trade, to our everyday items, Petrochemistry became an integral part of our lives. Continuous flow technologies in petrochemical processes offer several advantages that enhance efficiency, safety, and sustainability.
Continuous flow systems allow for the uninterrupted processing of materials. The ability to circumvent purification steps, the high thermal efficiency and enhanced real-time parameter control all lead to higher throughput and reduced reaction times compared to traditional batch processes. The possibilities for reaction scaling in continuous flow are unparalleled, making our system highly versatile for all users.
Our systems minimize the chance of hazardous events. Designed with a multitude of automated safety features and ease of use in mind, coupled with the inherent safety of continuous flow processes our users can focus on their goals without having to worry about the risks associated with batch processes.
ThalesNano instruments are designed from the ground up to carry out petrochemical heterogeneous and homogeneous catalytic reactions that require high pressures and temperatures with the addition of on-demand high purity hydrogen generation.
These reactions include:
- Hydrodenitrogenation
- Hydrodesulfurization
- Dearomatization
- Hydrocracking
- Isomerization
The Importance of Alternative Fuels in Petrochemistry
As the world’s energy demands continue to grow, the development of alternative fuels has become a key focus in addressing both environmental and economic challenges. For the chemical industry, this shift represents an opportunity to apply advanced scientific techniques to create cleaner, more sustainable energy solutions. By harnessing cutting-edge technologies like catalytic hydrogenation and innovative reactor designs, researchers are finding ways to turn renewable resources into efficient fuel alternatives, helping reduce reliance on traditional fossil fuels.
Innovative Chemistry for Sustainable Energy
The production of alternative fuels hinges on efficient chemical processes that transform raw materials like biomass or waste products into usable energy. Techniques such as gas-to-liquid (GTL) synthesis, bio-catalysis are proving to be game-changers. These approaches not only increase the efficiency of fuel production but also make it possible to use non-food biomass and other renewable resources, avoiding competition with agriculture.
Cutting Carbon Emissions Through Chemical Solutions
Fuels like biodiesel, ethanol, and hydrogen are at the forefront of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Among them, hydrogen stands out for its high energy content and clean combustion. Chemical processes such as electrolysis, powered by renewable energy, and steam methane reforming with integrated carbon capture are advancing hydrogen’s role in the energy mix. Similarly, biofuels derived through processes like transesterification highlight how chemistry can turn plant-based materials or waste into viable, low-carbon fuel options.
Flow Chemistry: A Breakthrough for Fuel Development
At ThalesNano, flow chemistry is at the heart of our approach to alternative fuel innovation. Continuous flow reactors bring greater control and efficiency to chemical reactions, making them ideal for applications like catalytic hydrogenation, which is crucial for refining bio-oils or producing renewable hydrocarbons. These systems offer a safer, scalable, and more environmentally friendly way to develop next-generation fuels.
Investing in alternative fuels is no longer just about reducing emissions—it’s about creating a more resilient and energy-independent future. ThalesNano is proud to support this transition, providing the tools and expertise that empower industries to innovate and lead in this crucial area of petrochemistry.
Instrument Fleet
The Phoenix Flow Reactor system is designed for high temperature/high-pressure catalytic reactions up to 450 °C and 200 bar. The modularity of ThalesNano instruments allows for designing and customizing an endless variety of synthetic platforms including multiple liquid and gas feeds. Utilizing patented technology, The H-Genie® 2.0 enables the production of 4.0 purity hydrogen gas from water at pressures up to 100 bar (1450 psi) and flow rates up to 1 NL/min.
With our instrument fleets, researchers can control multiple platforms, designed for different applications, simultaneously, from a single user interface. The THS System Controller® and THS ReAction® Software provides fully automated reaction parameter sequencing, fleet-wide safety features and precise data logging functionality.
Browse our application notes
Discover the potential of Flow Chemistry for Petrochemical applications in related application notes. We invite you to explore these valuable resources, providing insights, protocols, and real-world examples.
In this note we demonstrate how the H-Cube® Pro instrument can be coupled with an automatic liquid handler (“Autosampler”) from Brooks, as well as a Spinsolve® in-line NMR spectrometer from Magritek, to perform nitro group hydrogenations.
The group produced paraffin hydrocarbons (up to C16) from CO2 in continuous flow from hydrogen and metal-organic frameworks as catalysts.
In this Application Note we demonstrate how using the ThalesNano Instrument System will yield valuable fuel additives.
In this application note, we feature the work of Carlos Afonso’s group centered around furfural and the work of Prof. Dr. Jeroen Anton van Bokhoven’s group.
Read related publications
Discover research and scientific publications utilizing the ThalesNano Instrument Fleet for petrochemical use cases.
For Petrochemistry, these specific publications provide the highest value from our Publication Library:
- Hany E. Ahmed, Ahmed E. Rashed, Mohamed E. El-Khouly, et al.: Green approach for sustainable production of paraffin fuel from CO2 hydrogenation on Fe-MOF catalyst, Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering, 11(5), 2023, p111071.
- S. Püschel, S. Störtte, J. Topphoff, A. J. Vorholt, W. Leitner, ChemSusChem, 2021, 14, 5226. (Green Process Design for Reductive Hydroformylation of Renewable Olefin Cuts for Drop-In Diesel Fuels)
- Vladimir Paunovic, Jeroen A. van Bokhoven et al., Journal of Catalysis, 2022, 407, 54–64
- Lídia A. S. Cavaca, Carlos A. M. Afonso et al., React. Chem. Eng., 2023, 8, 482
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