Patent ID: 7255474

Claim:
An apparatus for simultaneously evaluating flow reactions comprising a parallel infrared detection system for simultaneously analyzing at least two flowing fluid samples, comprising: a parallel flow reactor comprising two or more reactors, each of the two or more reactors comprising a reaction cavity for carrying out a chemical reaction, an inlet port in fluid communication with the reaction cavity for providing a feed stream comprising one or more reactants to the reaction cavity, and an outlet port in fluid communication with the reaction cavity for discharging an effluent stream comprising one or more reaction products, and a fluid distribution system comprising a feed distribution subsystem for simultaneously supplying the feed stream to the inlet port of each of the two or more reactors, and an effluent distribution subsystem for discharging the effluent stream from the outlet port of each of the two or more reactors, the parallel infrared detection system comprising (a) at least two detection cells, each of the at least two detection cells comprising (i) a detection cavity having one or more infrared reflective surfaces for reflecting infrared radiation, (ii) an inlet port for receiving one of the at least two samples into the detection cavity, and (iii) an outlet port for discharging the sample from the detection cavity; (b) one or more infrared radiation sources for simultaneously irradiating each of the at least two samples with infrared radiation in the detection cavity of their respective detection cells, the one or more infrared radiation sources and the one or more infrared reflective surfaces being configured such that infrared radiation reflects off of the one or more infrared reflective surfaces within the detection cavity of each of the detection cells; and (c) a detector configured for simultaneously detecting reflected infrared radiation from each of the detection cells over time for analysis of the samples, wherein the effluent distribution subsystem of the parallel flow reactor is configured such that at least a portion of the discharged effluent steam of one of the two or more reactors is provided as a flowing fluid sample to the inlet port of a respective one of the detection cells.