Synthesizing organic compounds can be a long and tedious process. Traditional automated organic synthesizers incorporate heating blocks into specialized liquid handling workstations and can take several days for reactions to complete. In contrast, microwave systems employ microwave radiation as the heat source, which reduces the time for compound synthesis.

Microwave-Assisted Organic Synthesis (MAOS) offers other advantages over conventional heating techniques, including faster reaction times, controlled reaction conditions, increased yields, decreased sample preparation, and solvent reduction or elimination, which lead to cost savings and consistent results. MAOS methods are also scalable, allowing users to convert milligram-scale reactions to larger volumes without lengthy optimization processes. Furthermore, solvent reduction and elimination classifies the technology as eco-friendly.

MAOS is heavily used in the pharmaceutical industry. Applications are found in combinatorial chemistry, medicinal chemistry, drug discovery and process applications. Systems are also used for R&D in the academic and biotechnology sectors for the synthesis of proteins. Specific applications include solid-phase synthesis, focused library generation and high-pressure chemistry.

There are two types of MAOS reactors: single mode or multimode. Single-mode systems enable more homogeneous heat distribution and are typically employed for smaller-scale reactions. Multimode systems have a larger cavity, allowing for parallel heating of multiple vessels and larger-scale reactions.

CEM, in many respects, is considered to be a pioneer in the microwave chemistry market. The company offers three organic synthesizers: the Discover, MARS, and Voyager. The Discover and Voyager are single-mode manual microwave synthesizers, and MARS is a multimode model. Biotage is uniquely focused on synthesis and has complementary products to support this activity, such as flash chromatography. The company’s Initiator microwave synthesizer features a 400-watt magnetron, and temperature and pressure ranges of 40–250°C and 0–20 bar, respectively. Biotage also manufactures the MultiSynTech Syro series of microwave-assisted peptide synthesizers. Milestone and Anton Paar also participate in the MAOS market. Milestone offers the MultiSYNTH and MicroSYNTH synthesizers, while Anton Paar’s Synthos is the company’s signature microwave synthesizer.

The current market for microwave synthesizers is estimated to be around $20 million. The technology has yet to realize its full potential in the pharmaceutical area, which is expected to be the largest driving force for market growth. Although the current growth of microwave synthesizers is in mid-single digits, the growth rate is expected to increase because it is becoming the favored method for peptide and chemical synthesis in many laboratories.

Microwave-Assisted Organic

Synthesizers at a Glance:

Leading Suppliers

• CEM

• Biotage

• Milestone

Largest Markets

• Pharmaceutical

• Academia

• Biotechnology

Instrument Cost

• $25,000–$125,000