Batch reactor
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A batch reactor is used in chemical processes for small scale operation, for testing new processes that have not been fully developed, for the manufacture of expensive products, and for processes that are difficult to convert into continuous operations. The main advantage of a batch reactor is high conversion, which be obtained by leaving the reactant in the reactor for long periods of time, but it also has the disadvantages of high labor costs per batch and the difficulty of large scale production. In a batch reactor, all the reactants are loaded at once. The concentration then varies with time, but at any one time it is uniform throughout. Agitation serves to mix separate feeds initially and to enhance heat transfer. Batch reactors are popular in practice because of their flexibility with respect to reaction time and to the kinds and quantities of reactions that can be performed. Characteristics of a batch reactor are that the total mass of each batch is fixed, each batch is a closed system, and the reaction (residence) time for all elements of fluid is the same.
