Abstract
In order to realize sustainable development, it is anticipated that industrial structure, social and technical systems based on large-scale production at concentrated sites must be changed in the near future. Establishment of highly controllable compact processes with high speed reaction is desired to realize distributed production with multi-purpose low-volume production. Integration of high-pressure micro-engineering and supercritical fluid has received considerable attention as a core technology for compact processes. To realize the technology, basic developments for high-pressure micro-engineering such as rapid heat exchange and precise temperature control were firstly needed, and then process developments on basic engineering followed. As applications of compact processes, organic synthesis under supercritical water is discussed, and inorganic synthesis and an innovative coating process using supercritical carbon dioxide are also described.
