SBI's specially designed reactor system speeds up reactions by influencing reaction kinetics, thereby intensifying processing and making them faster, safer, more consistent in quality, reproducible and efficiency.

Fine chemical production, a critical stage of the pharmaceutical research, development, and manufacturing, typically occurs in a batch environment. A superior alternative production methodology known as continuous processing technologies can reduce operating expenses by 90% and capital expenses by 50%.

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Advantages of PICTR over a Traditional Batch Process

 

Improved Kinetics :  Reduces reaction time from hours to seconds by influencing reaction kinetics. SBI's proprietary PICFTR reactor system, with superior mixing and heat exchange, intensifies the reaction.

 

Improved Quality and Yield :  PICFTR technology allows the performing of larger volume reactions by rapid cycling of minute batches with a high degree of accuracy and reproducibility. PICFTR technology enables precise control on process parameters in real time. This is a significant improvement over standard batch reactions, where process parameters are hard to control due to the large volumes involved. Due to this precise control, PICFTRs deliver more reproducible results than batch reactions.

 

Handling of Energetic Exothermic Reactions:  PICFTR can handle highly energetic reactions that are simply not possible on commercial scale in batch or even using other prevalent continuous processing technologies that are designed to accommodate only retention time.

 

Ease of Scalability:  PICFTR technology enables greater flexibility in production run sizes, which can be changed without making any modification in design or equipment size, thereby maintaining strict process parameters without compromising product quality or yields. Therefore, only the run time has to be increased, not the run size, to increase production scale.

 

Reduced Energy Consumption:  PICFTR technology can operate with highly concentrated reactants that reduce energy consumption by up to 30%. In contrast, batch production uses a large amount of solvent to dilute the reactants, consequently requiring energy demanding evaporation.

 

Reduced Costs :  PICFTR provides several-fold cost reduction compared with current manufacturing techniques due to lower initial capital expenditures, the increase in quality of output, and process automation. In particular, the superior performance of PICFTR technology allows operation at optimal reaction conditions, at higher concentrations or even solvent-less thereby minimizing raw materials wastage as well as the volumes of solvents and by-products that need to be handled or disposed of. Similarly, process automation results in increased efficiency and reduced labour costs.

 

Improved Safety and Environmental Impact :  With the reduction in quantities of reactants at any given moment to almost minuscule levels, various risks that affect the scalability of sensitive reactions are virtually eliminated. This, in turn, reduces the risk of accidents by almost eliminating the problems that are related to large scale batch reactions.

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SBI will continue to conduct research and development in the following areas:
1. Alternative feed stocks including ligno-cellulosic material; and C5 and C6 cellulose derived sugars;
2. New catalysts or modifications to existing catalysts, with new catalysts to expand feedstock base; and
3. New products such as bio-plastics and renewable solvents made from renewable glycerin and biodiesel rather than petroleum-based
feed stocks.

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SBI will seek grant funding and use internal funds generated from commercial revenue to support its ongoing research program.