| abstract |
A planar flow reactor comprising a straight planar process channel, a flow generator configured to generate a pulsatile flow within the process channel, the pulsatile flow comprising a unidirectional net flow through the process channel and an oscillatory flow superposed on said net flow, and a plurality of static mixing elements disposed within the process channel and configured to locally split and recombine said flow. A straight planar process channel enables the generation of a flow pattern that is largely independent of the width of the process channel, meaning that the throughput may be increased by increasing the width without significantly affecting the residence time distribution or the flow behaviour. Furthermore, by creating a pulsatile flow within the process channel, turbulence and/or chaotic fluid flows may be generated even at low net flow rates, i.e. low net Reynolds numbers. |