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AssigneeE. I. Du Pont de Nemours and Company
InventorsStephan Claude De La Veaux, Lu Zhang
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The present invention provides a method and apparatus for the controlled synthesis of nanoparticles using a high temperature process. The reactor chamber includes a high temperature gas heated by means such as a plasma torch, and a reaction chamber. The homogenizer includes a region between the reactant inlets and the plasma (the spacer zone) to ensure that feeds from the reactant inlets are downstream of the recirculation zone induced by the high temperature gas. It also includes a region downstream of the reactant inlets that provides a nearly I dimensional (varying only in the axial direction) flow and concentration profile in the reaction zone to produce nanoparticles with narrow size distribution.
A reactor for the production of nanoparticles in an aerosol process comprising:
A reaction chamber for minimizing flow recirculation in a reactor for the production of reaction product nanoparticles, the reaction chamber comprising a wall, an entrance and an exit a hot carrier gas inlet located about the entrance of the reaction chamber and quench material inlets located about the exit of the reaction chamber and radially distributed reactant inlets located between the hot carrier gas inlet and the quench inlets, the reactant inlets being located downstream of a recirculation zone created by the hot carrier gas as it flows downward from the hot carrier gas inlet toward the reactant inlets, the hot carrier gas inlet and reactant inlets being oriented for a downward flow direction of the hot carrier gas and reactants, the reaction chamber comprising a spacer zone and a homogenization zone (i) the spacer zone having a length, (L1), extending from the reaction chamber entrance and ending about the reactant inlets having an upper diameter converging, upstream of the reactant inlets, to a lower diameter tubular region which reactant inlets are positioned to introduce reactants into the tubular region, the tubular region extending into the homogenization zone and (ii) the homogenization zone including the tubular region followed by a converging section which converges to a nozzle tip and having a length (L2) extending from the reactant inlets to a position downstream of the quench inlets for contacting the hot carrier gas and the reactants and wherein (L1) of the spacer zone is sufficient for the hot carrier gas to attach to the wall of the reaction chamber before the hot carrier gas reaches the reactant inlets and (L2) of the reaction chamber being sufficient for a residence time within the homogenization zone suitable for forming the reaction product nanoparticles.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.