Flow Chemistry

Over the past few years, flow chemistry has become a powerful and beneficial tool for the fine chemicals and pharmaceutical industry in the manufacturing of complex active pharmaceutical ingredients (API).

As a complement to traditional batch manufacturing, flow chemistry opens up the possibility of developing processes in a more sustainable manner, improving safety and productivity, and reducing their environmental impact.

To our proven track record in chemical R&D in batch manufacturing, flow chemistry is incorporated in Enantia in 2023 as an additional enabling tool for our customers’ chemical R&D projects. The aim is to provide comprehensive services in the development of routes of synthesis, process optimization and scale up of key intermediates and API manufacturing processes, as part of our chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) activities.

Flow chemistry has several unique characteristics which makes it complementary to batch manufacturing:

• Efficient mass and heat transfer
• Small reactor volumes
• Precise control of reaction parameters
• Improved selectivity and reproducibility
• Enhanced safety of the chemical process
• Reaction telescoping
• High process intensification
• Simple scale-up (numbering up or sizing up)

All these advantages, enable the successful performance of processes that, otherwise, would not be feasible at industrial scale in batch reactors:

• Processes requiring accurate controlled conditions: The accurate control of process parameters (temperature and residence time) and the high mass and heat transfer rates in reactions in flow, allow reactions to be carried out under precise temperatures (quasi-isothermal) and very short reaction times (flash reactions). This high level of control, results in improved selectivity and reproducibility.
• Processes with hazardous reagents or intermediates: Under flow conditions, unstable or hazardous reagents can be generated in situ and readily consumed safely. The small reactions volumes also ensure that only a small amount of material is processed at any given time, which also results in hazardous reactions being run safely.
• Processes carried out under extreme conditions: Flow chemistry allows the use of reaction conditions that are far from those in conventional batch reactors, such as high pressure, high temperature (above the boiling point) high concentrations (solvent-free) and extremely short reaction times.

Furthermore, flow chemistry integrates into Enantia’s medicinal chemistry platform as an additional tool to support the company’s MedChem activities. Flow chemistry, can be successfully applied to the rapid, sequential, and efficient synthesis of medicinal chemistry libraries.

Enantia offers the flow chemistry services in partnership with Alza&Associates, a sustainable chemistry consulting company. Synergistically, we combine Enantia’s extensive experience in chemical R&D of drug substances with A&A’s extensive experience and deep flow chemistry knowledge to provide a unique, industry-oriented service.

Flow reaction system available: Laboratory flow reactor, with two pumps (42 Bars), 4 reaction positions, working from ambient to 250ºC, with flow rates from 0.05 to 10 mL/min.

Reactors available:
– 2, 5 and 10 mL PTF and stainless-steel coiled tube reactors
– Column reactor (10 x 150 mm) for solid supported reagents, catalysts or scavengers