Chemical Synthesis Reactors

The innovative chemical synthesis reactors, EasyMax and OptiMax, are easy-to-use platforms that accurately and precisely control reaction parameters and execute recipes, thus enabling every chemist to perform reactions reproducibly. Experiment procedures can be run unattended, around the clock, all data is automatically recorded, and ready to be instantly shared and reported. Chemical reactors reinvent the way scientists work, enabling their ability to generate more information per experiment, and accelerate the delivery of life-changing products. Automated chemical synthesis reactors are well established in chemical and pharmaceutical industry, and are essential to speed up time-to-market cycles at lower R&D costs. 

Discover breakthrough molecules and explore novel synthetic steps using a variety of reactor designs. With a broad application range, the automated chemical reactors pose no limits on your creativity and productivity in the chemical synthesis laboratory. Reactor volumes range from 8 ml tubes to 1 L vessels, one-piece or two-piece reactors fit your chemistry and workflow.

Chemical synthesis reactors operate with temperature ranges from -80 to 180 °C, overhead and magnetic stirring, vacuum, ambient to high pressure chemistry. Every chemist can enjoy solving complex chemistry problems using the walk-up chemical synthesis reactors. 

EasyMax LowTemp expands the design space to a variable temperature range from -90 to 80 °C – for discovery of new synthetic pathways, process optimization and design of reactions at sub-ambient conditions including organometallic reactions (specifically metalation and lithiation).

Unlike traditional equipment with discrete temperatures at 0 °C, -21 °C (sodium chloride in ice) and -78 °C (acetone/dry ice), EasyMax LT precisely controls experimental conditions along a broad temperature range – even when unattended.

Key topics include:

• Recent changes in the R&D landscape
• Interactive discussion of common challenges related to synthesis in Chemical and Pharmaceutical industries - including in your company
• Tools to support reaction optimization and lab digitalization
• Application examples from industry
• Return On Investment (ROI) examples

View a Live eDemo from your work or home office on your schedule.

OptiMax lab reactor systems are designed to ensure safe, robust and scalable processes. Researchers can characterize and optimize chemical reactions in the liter scale before going to manufacturing. OptiMax chemical reactors are applied for go/no-go safety considerations when scaling-up through identifiying enthalpy, heat capacity, heat and mass transfer under process-like conditions. The synthesis reactors are widely applied when engineering particles by (re)crystallization with Particle Size Analyzers.

Based on our partnerships with leading scientists, we understand the challenges and needs of today and tomorrow. The chemical reactors are designed to minimize bottlenecks, and maximize efficiency in chemical laboratories.

More than ever, scientists are looking to automate tedious and manual chemical synthesis procedures. Automation of reaction conditions, experiment controls, and data collection increases personal productivity, while ensuring safe operations during day and night. 

• Chemical Synthesis
• Design of Experiments (DoE)
• Organometallic Chemistry
• C-H Activation Reactions
• Impurity Profiling
• Chemical Process Development and Scale-up
• Chemical Process Safety
• Parallel Synthesis
• Crystallization and Recrystallization
• Hydrogenation Reactions
• Viral Inactivation in Bioprocessing
• Oligonucleotide Synthesis

Based on partnerships with leading scientists, we understand the challenges and needs the industry is facing today and tomorrow. The chemical synthesis reactors are designed to minimize the bottlenecks and maximize the efficiency of the chemical laboratory. One way of overcoming these limitations  is using Design of Experiment (DoE) studies based on high-quality experimental data. Deploy Design of Experiments (DoE)  to speed up time to manufacturing and to optimize reaction and process parameters such as yield & purity. Explore unique combinations of settings (temperature, pH, dosing, stirring, etc.) on the outcome of dependent variables. 

Solutions that enable a culture of safety must fulfill the needs of every scientist, minimize all risks to ensure maximum personal safety, enable the development of process conditions that match large-scale operation, and assess hazards to predict the risks of a process.

We developed EasyMax, a chemical reactor that ensures personal safety in the laboratory through controlling reaction safely, automatically and preprogrammed with limited exposure to chemicals.

Eliminate the risk of exposure and design inherently safe processes.

Every scientist need to gain information to answer critical questions when innovating molecules, optimizing reaction routes, and creating robust and safe processes. Chemical synthesis reactors integrate seamlessly with in situ probes, including EasySampler, ReactIR, and particle size analyzers. The consolidated data stream of reaction parameters together with the information on kinetics, reaction mechanisms, impurity profiles, and particle attributes provides critical answers when developing processes from lab-to-plant. The integrated solution enables scientists to deliver life-changing products faster and more cost-efficiently.

"The EasyMax is the first controlled reactor system in an organic chemistry lab that is completely accepted by chemists and already supersedes the traditional round bottom flask. The EasyMax helps get more successful experiments done and develop a better processes."
– Luc Moens, Research Fellow, Chemical Process and R&D, Johnson & Johnson Belgium

"The EasyMax touchpad and vessel setup is easy and state of the art. I can plan reactions ahead so I can focus on my chemistry rather than working on equipment issues …"
– Dr. Gerry Budz, Chemical Development, Novartis Pharma, USA

"We have distributed EasyMax units to individual users and established walk-up EasyMax work stations and they are used in both early and late stage development."
– Dr. Marty Guinn, Chemical Development, Pfizer Pharma, USA
 

"The EasyMax system is simple, reliable and is the workhorse in our lab. Our enjoyment of this product extends beyond the equipment itself …"
– Dr. Anthony M. DiJulio, Novartis Pharma, USA

Below is a selection of publications about chemical synthesis reactors.

Peplow, M. – "Automation for the people: Training a new generation of chemists in data-driven synthesis", C&EN, October 27,2019, Vol. 97, Issue 42

Yang., et al. "Evaluation of Potential Safety Hazards Associated with the Suzuki−Miyaura Cross-Coupling of Aryl Bromides with Vinylboron Species." Org. Process Res. Dev. 2018, 22, 351−359

Buetti-Weekly, Michele T., et al. "Development of a safe and scalable process for the preparation of allyl glyoxalate." Organic Process Research & Development 22.1, 2018: 82-90.

Thomas, et al. "Scalable and Selective Preparation of 3, 3′, 5, 5′-Tetramethyl-2, 2′-biphenol." Organic Process Research & Development 21.1, 2017: 79-84.

Charles D. Papageorgiou et al. "Development and Scale-up of an Efficient Miyaura Borylation Process Using Tetrahydroxydiboron" Organic Process Research & Development 22.1, 2017, 65-74

Kinetics of a C-H Activation Reaction, Sampling Air-Sensitive Reactions, METTLER TOLEDO Application Note based on studies by Brian Vanderplas and David Place, Pfizer

Hwang R., Noack R. M. − International Journal of Experimental Design and Process Optimisation, 2011, Vol.2, No.1, pp. 58 − 65

Guidance for Industry, Q8 (R2) Pharmaceutical Development, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration, November 2009, Revision 2

Mills J. E. – Chemical Process Research, ACS Symposium Series, 2003, Chapter 6, pp 87 – 109 

Owen et al. − Organic Process Research & Development, 2001, 5, pp. 308 − 323

Researchers can choose between different versions of EasyMax systems or upgrade existing syntheses reactors to bring  expanded control and smart data management. Download a guide to help choose the right EasyMax model for your lab.

What is a Chemical Synthesis Reactor?
Chemical synthesis reactors are vessels in which a chemical reactions takes place. Reaction parameters, such as temperature, dosing, stirring and sampling, are set to perform a synthesis reaction. Accuracy and precision of those reaction parameters play an important role on the selectivity, conversion and reproducibility of the chemical reaction.

What are the types of Chemical Synthesis Reactors?
For R&D groups, there are three type of chemical reactors: batch, continuous stirred-tank and plug flow reactors. Batch reactors are stirred tank reactors where the chemical reaction occurs in a confined space over a period of time. Continuous stirred-tank reactors, or semi-batch reactors, have reactants continuously added and (by)products are removed. Plug-flow reactors are usually tubular reactors, where conversion of chemical reactions is influenced by residential time.

What are the challenges with traditional Chemical Reactor equipment?
Preparations of manual lab equipment is cumbersome, slow, and not safe. The traditional set-ups are poorly controlled with non-consisent and non-reproducible results around the limiting reaction parameter range, such as T, p, pH, and sampling. Information gaps limit the understanding as data is not recorded and documentation is lost.

Chemical Reactors and Automation
Automated Chemical Synthesis Reactors are designed around quick start, easy handling, precise control, intrisic safety and integrated analysis and reporting. Start the recipe from preconfigured home screen using a touchscreen. No ice or oil baths are required, despite having a variety of volumes and application ranges. Control all reaction paramaters precisely and 24/7 to assure better data quality and complete data sets. Active cooling allows fast temperature control and avoids unexpected side products Export your data to ensure traceability of results, visualization & consistency.

Chemical Synthesis Reactors for Design of Experiments (DoE)
In modern multi-paramater analysis (e.g. in Design of Experiments), precise and reproducible paramater control is critical to get accurate results. In DoE, the quality of resulting statistical data describing responses such as yield and product purity depend heavily on the ability of the synthesis tool to control reaction paramaters precisely within tight tolerances. It is shown that manual tools do often fail with precise parameter control.

Personal Synthesis Workstation as Chemical Reactor
A personal synthesis workstation includes a set of batch reactors equipped with dosing, sampling, stirring, and temperatur contol. This set-up allows to control temperature changes precisely over the reaction period while dosing ramps, sampling points, and changes of stirrer speed can be easily programmed. Reaction data are captured automatically as the experiment proceeds allowing the scientist to run them unattended and to have a focus on other activitities.