Industrial biocatalysis has been identified as one of the key enabling technologies that, together with the transition to continuous processing, offers prospects for the development of cost-efficient manufacturing with high-quality products and low waste generation. This feature article highlights the role of miniaturized flow reactors with free enzymes and cells in the success of this endeavor with recent examples of their use in single or multiphase reactions. Microfluidics-based droplets enable ultrahigh-throughput screening and rapid biocatalytic process development. The use of unique microreactor configurations ensures highly efficient contacting of multiphase systems, resulting in process intensification and avoiding problems encountered in conventional batch processing. Further integration of downstream units offers the possibility of biocatalyst recycling, contributing to the cost-efficiency of the process. The use of environmentally friendly solvents supports effective reaction engineering, and thus paves the way for these highly selective catalysts to drive sustainable production.
工业生物催化被认为是关键的使能技术之一，与连续加工的转变一起，为具有成本效益的制造、高质量产品和低废物生成提供了前景。本文重点介绍了游离酶和细胞的小型化流动反应器在这方面的作用，以及最近在单相和多相反应中使用它们的例子。基于微流控的液滴可实现超高通量筛选和快速生物催化过程开发。使用独特的微反应器构型可确保多相系统的高效接触，从而实现过程强化，并避免在传统的间歇处理中遇到的问题。进一步整合下游单元为生物催化剂的回收提供了可能性，有助于提高过程的成本效益。使用环保型溶剂有助于有效的反应工程，从而为这些高选择性催化剂推动可持续生产铺平了道路。
