Flash-Vacuum Pyrolysis

Flash vacuum pyrolysis (FVP) is a method for the preparation of (commonly) small quantities of chemicals by subjecting suitable precursors to very high temperatures (e.g. 900 °C) under relatively high vacuum. This allows the molecules to pass through the very hot part of the system in about one hundredth of a second; long enough to react to give the product but not long enough to decompose. This type of process has been used in various research projects in universities, etc., but, so far as we know, only on a small scale to give perhaps a few grams of product in a day. The system we have built allows us to pyrolyse much larger quantities at a time (50 to 100 g in one run) and is capable of handling non-condensable extruded gases (e.g. nitrogen). This means that we can use the technique to prepare compounds on a commercial scale!