Development and application of calibration free techniques for reaction profiling

In this technological information age, dimension reduction methods are key because they enable the almost instantaneous extraction of relevant information from large complex data sets. This is particularly crucial within the process analytical environment where "right-first-time" and "just-in-time" approaches push the technological and economic persuasions of a manufacturing culture. In line with this paradigm, mathematical tools which decompose highly complex multivariate and multicomponent measurements into their lowest dimensionality without the need of a priori knowledge have been used to provide intelligence regarding different processes. This intelligence includes the pure spectra and concentration profiles of the reaction constituents, by-products and short lived intermediates. These tools are known as calibration free techniques (CFT) and in this thesis they have been developed and applied to complex academic and industrial problems, which include the rhodium catalysed asymmetric transfer hydrogenation reaction of a prochiral imine, the pyridine catalysed esterification reaction of acetic anhydride and the vinyl acetate monomer process. These chemical systems are typically deficient in a priori information leading to the generation of a chemical or dynamic process model. The application of CFTs are favourable because they do not require a priori information to provide intelligence regarding the reaction constituents which may lead to a reduction in process cost and increased efficiency of the manufacturing process