Method and apparatus for conducting catalytic reactions with simultaneous product separation and recovery

A method for conducting a catalytic chemical or biochemical conversion of a reactant present in a feed mixture to a desired end product so as to simultaneously effect separation of said desired end product from the reaction mixture and recovery of said desired end product in a more concentrated form than the initial reactant concentration in the feed mixture, comprising the steps of:

• (a) providing a compartmentalized catalytic reactor having a feed stream flow path and a product stream flow path extending in substantially parallel relation through said reactor on opposite sides of a multilayer composite membrane comprising (1) a feed stream-side permselective membrane layer interfacing with said feed stream flow path and being permeable to said reactant and substantially impermeable to a reaction product and (2) a catalytic membrane layer adjacent to said feed stream-side permselective membrane layer, said catalytic membrane layer being composed of a microporous membrane having internal porous surfaces having immobilized thereon a conversion catalyst capable of irreversibly affecting conversion of said reactant to said desired end product within the presence of said conversion catalyst, and wherein the product stream side of said composite membrane is permeable to said desired end product;
• (b) passing said feed mixture through said reactor along said feed stream flow path, whereby said reactant diffuses through said feed stream-side permselective membrane layer into said catalytic membrane layer where it becomes converted to said desired end product, the free energy change of the conversion reaction serving to drive said desired end product, said product subsequently diffusing toward said product stream flow path and
• (c) passing an inert sweep fluid through said reactor along said product stream flow path at a flow rate lower than that of said feed mixture, whereby said desired end product separated from the reaction mixture and in a more concentrated form than the initial reactant concentration in the feed mixture is recovered as the product stream withdrawn from said product stream flow path.