Important Considerations in the Design of Polymerization Reactors

(Follow-up to “Making Plastics: From Monomer to Polymer,” CEP, Sept. 2015, pp. 24–29)

This article explores key principles of reaction engineering unique to polymerization that should be considered in selecting, sizing, and troubleshooting polymerization reactors, including:
• reaction system design
• heat removal
• reactor operation
• polymer properties
• the kinetics-properties link
• product quality
• process dynamics