A reactor for producing desired reaction products has a housing, a plurality of catalyst conduits within the housing, and a plurality of coolant conduits within the housing. The coolant conduits are interspersed among the catalyst conduits, and each catalyst conduit is positioned adjacent to at least two coolant conduits.

A catalyzing reactor comprising a reactor entrance and a reactor exit and an internal structure arranged for flowing a reacting medium through the reactor from the reactor entrance to the reactor exit. The reactor structure comprising at least one thin walled reactor channel arranged between the entrance and the exit of the reactor. The channel having a channel wall that includes a catalyst and that defines a flow path, in which channel in use, a catalyzed exothermic reaction takes place in the medium as it flows along the flow path. The at least one channel is looped to have a portion of its flow path that is downstream with respect to the reactor entrance in heat exchanging contact with a portion of a flow path that is that is more upstream with respect to the reactor entrance, so as to transfer heat between a downstream portion of the reacting medium to an upstream portion thereof.

A propulsion element including a catalyzing reactor is disclosed. The catalyzing reactor comprises a reactor entrance and a reactor exit and an internal structure arranged for flowing a reacting medium through the reactor from the reactor entrance to the reactor exit. The reactor structure comprising at least one thin walled reactor channel arranged between the entrance and the exit of the reactor. The channel having a channel wall that includes a catalyst and that defines a flow path, in which channel in use, a catalyzed exothermic reaction takes place in the medium as it flows along the flow path. The at least one channel is looped to have a portion of its flow path that is downstream with respect to the reactor entrance in heat exchanging contact with a portion of a flow path that is that is more upstream with respect to the reactor entrance, so as to transfer heat between a downstream portion of the reacting medium to an upstream portion thereof.

A device for the through-flow of a fluid may include a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet. A porous structure with interconnected pores is arranged between the fluid inlet and the fluid outlet, and the fluid inlet and the fluid outlet define an overall flow direction. The porous structure is coupled to a wall to provide for heat conduction between the porous structure and the wall. The porous structure has a porosity gradient along a first direction, which is cross to the overall flow direction. The porosity gradient develops along the first direction between a first porosity at a first location proximal to the wall and a second porosity larger than the first porosity at a second location remote from the wall. The difference between the second porosity and the first porosity may be at least 4%.

A propulsion element including a catalyzing reactor is disclosed. The catalyzing reactor comprises a reactor entrance and a reactor exit and an internal structure arranged for flowing a reacting medium through the reactor from the reactor entrance to the reactor exit. The reactor structure comprising at least one thin walled reactor channel arranged between the entrance and the exit of the reactor. The channel having a channel wall that includes a catalyst and that defines a flow path, in which channel in use, a catalyzed exothermic reaction takes place in the medium as it flows along the flow path. The at least one channel is looped to have a portion of its flow path that is downstream with respect to the reactor entrance in heat exchanging contact with a portion of a flow path that is that is more upstream with respect to the reactor entrance, so as to transfer heat between a downstream portion of the reacting medium to an upstream portion thereof.

A device for the through-flow of a fluid may include a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet. A porous structure with interconnected pores is arranged between the fluid inlet and the fluid outlet, and the fluid inlet and the fluid outlet define an overall flow direction. The porous structure is coupled to a wall to provide for heat conduction between the porous structure and the wall. The porous structure has a porosity gradient along a first direction, which is cross to the overall flow direction. The porosity gradient develops along the first direction between a first porosity at a first location proximal to the wall and a second porosity larger than the first porosity at a second location remote from the wall. The difference between the second porosity and the first porosity may be at least 4%.

Described is an industrial scale chemical reactor or reactor containing a shell having an inner wall, and at least one channel inside the shell. The shell has a circular, square, or rectangular cross-sectional area. All of the internal dimensions of the channel are greater than 10 mm, and optionally less than 50 mm. The channel has a rectangular cross-sectional area, and contains a catalyst bed containing catalyst particles and/or pieces containing catalyst particles packed inside the channel. The reactor has improved shell volume utilization, catalyst loading capacities, heat exchange efficiency, process intensification, or combinations thereof, compared to currently existing reactors. Exothermic reactions, such as the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis can be performed inside the channels of the reactor. Also described are methods of making the reactor.

Described is an industrial scale chemical reactor or reactor containing a shell having an inner wall, and at least one channel inside the shell. The shell has a circular, square, or rectangular cross-sectional area. All of the internal dimensions of the channel are greater than 10 mm, and optionally less than 50 mm. The channel has a rectangular cross-sectional area, and contains a catalyst bed containing catalyst particles and/or pieces containing catalyst particles packed inside the channel. The reactor has improved shell volume utilization, catalyst loading capacities, heat exchange efficiency, process intensification, or combinations thereof, compared to currently existing reactors. Exothermic reactions, such as the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis can be performed inside the channels of the reactor. Also described are methods of making the reactor.

This monolithic reactor is an adaptable and scalable, flow-through reaction containment apparatus embodied as a one-piece monolithic block of material that retains re-configurability to improve reaction processing. This apparatus increases operational flexibility, adaptable design, and vastly simplifies construction of tubular reaction-containment configurations. Internally, the monolithic block comprises one or more closely spaced, functional voids which operate as fluid channels that can be configured in various geometric arrangements. The apparatus is widely scalable, provides high thermodynamic efficiency, manufacturing simplicity, and affordability for varied operations through additive manufacturing, and has a compact physical footprint.