Graded sieving membranes for organic acid purification from fermentation
Introducing advanced graded sieving membranes capable of precise molecular separation, enabling the efficient purification of organic acids from fermentation broths with up to 95% efficiency. These membranes offer high permeance and are stable under acidic conditions.
Overview
Discover the innovative graded sieving membranes designed for the purification of organic acids from fermentation processes. These membranes utilize nanofiltration and high-flux reverse osmosis technologies with rigid microporous polymer structures to achieve precise molecular separation. By adjusting pore sizes and surface charges through selected motifs, these membranes can selectively separate aqueous organic acids from pretreated fermentation feed solutions while rejecting other organics and salts. The process employs a low-energy forward osmosis method to concentrate the solutions, achieving up to 95% efficiency in organic acid recovery.
Technical specifications
- Nanofiltration and high-flux reverse osmosis: Utilizes rigid microporous polymer structures for precise separation
- Adjustable pore sizes and surface charges: Allows tailored separation by selecting different membrane motifs
- Chemical stability: Membranes are stable under acidic and basic conditions
- Precision control: Feed stream pH can be adjusted for selective organic acid separation
- High permeance and MWCO: Exhibits a sharp molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) of 100 to 200 Da
- Low-energy forward osmosis: Facilitates efficient dewatering of organic acid solutions
Technology readiness level
Currently at Technology Readiness Level 3, these membranes have demonstrated exceptional size-selective performance in energy-efficient separations. They are in the development and testing phase, with ongoing optimization for high flux and selectivity. Future validation efforts will focus on further characterizing and optimizing these membranes using structurally defined acyl chloride and amine monomers, preparing them on macroporous polyacrylonitrile supports.
About Stanford University
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