(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2013)
Liotta, Charles L.; Eckert, Charles A.; France, Stefan; Pollet, Pamela
Historically, batch processing has been the major strategy in the synthesis of complex molecules, especially molecules of pharmaceutical interest. In general, this approach has been fraught with high cost, excessive time for scale-up, and waste issues. In order to address these issues, continuous flow technology has been identified as an alternative production vehicle since it has both environmental and economic advantages. Continuous flow technology offers superior mass and heat transfer, and lower production costs when compared with the traditional batch technology. Technological transfer from batch to continuous flow maximizes performance in terms of product yield and selectivity while minimizing solvent and catalyst needs thereby lowering production costs. In addition, continuous flow processes can be “scaled out” in contrast to batch processes that must be “scaled up.” In this research project, we take advantage of continuous flow technology to conduct the multi-step synthesis shown in Scheme 1.