In the field of Process Intensification, manufacturers offer many technologies of heat exchanger-reactors which differ in the design, the nature of the material and the range of operating conditions. Such systems combine continuous operation with strongly coupled features of heat transfer, hydrodynamics, mixing, mass transfer and reaction that makes the choice of the optimal solution a difficult one. The present paper offers a comparison and a characterisation of heat exchanger-reactors manufactured in different materials: stainless steel and silicon carbide for the process plates, aluminium, stainless steel and silicon carbide for the utility plates. The results underline the advantages and drawbacks of each material and the associated impact on the control of industrial applications and, in particular, on the safety aspects. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.