By applying a porous membrane that keeps interface and protects two adjacent phases against dispersion, a fully controllable equipment to carry out (bio)chemical reactions is obtained. A membrane phase contactor with extended interfacial area and almost arbitrary phase ratio and broad range of phase flows enables an intensification of the process of reagent mass transport that could have an influence on the rate and conversion degree in biochemical transformations. This results in obtaining high process productivity and purity of the product isolated from one of the phases separated by the membrane. Additionally, the (bio)catalyst can be concentrated in the zone of high substrate concentration through an oriented immobilization of the (bio)catalyst on the surface of membrane in the form of a hydrated gel layer. Such process solution enables full integration of substrate mass transport rate with the rate of its transformation, which ensures exceptionally high purity of the reaction products in the receiving phase free of the substrate and catalyst. (C) 2004 Published by Elsevier B.V.