Compositions and methods for dehydration

Abstract

The present invention provides safe, environmentally friendly compositions and efficient methods for dehydration. More specifically, the present invention provides a microorganism-derived composition for dehydration, which can be used to increase the rate of dehydration and / or the number of dehydrated particles.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 388,020 filed on July 11, 2022 and U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 503,225 filed on May 19, 2023, both of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Background Art

[0003] Dewatering is used to efficiently remove sediment from the land and reduce pollution associated with various mining and quarrying practices. Dewatering agents may be added during the mining process to separate solids from liquids. Currently, dewatering of coarse particles involves centrifugal or gravity-based drainage systems using stationary or mechanical equipment such as screens, cone dewaterers, classifiers, scrapers, and hydrocyclones. Dewatering of concentrates is important to reduce weight and transportation costs from the mill to the smelter, roaster, or other processing plant. Dewatering of tailings is also often required to comply with environmental regulations or for efficient disposal.

[0004] Mining or excavating rock (including quarrying) may result in the generation of toxic waste contamination, including in the production of phosphates, coal, potash, tantalum carbide, mica and bentonite. Mining and subsequent product production processes typically use slurries containing minerals, elements or other materials of interest. These slurries may further contain suspended or colloidal particles, such as phosphate clay waste or coal clay waste, which may be toxic if released into the environment. In addition, the presence of liquids can hinder the effective treatment of toxic wastes.

[0005] In addition to the use of dewatering agents for mining purposes, dewatering agents are also used in papermaking and for treating sewage sludge from municipal wastewater or rainwater. However, with conventional dewatering agents, the amount of sludge that can be treated is limited, and the treatment conditions may not be satisfactory in terms of the moisture content of the dewatered filter cake, the recovery rate, and the removability of the filter cake through the filter cloth.

[0006] Therefore, there is a need for new and improved compositions and methods for dehydration. Summary of the invention

[0007] The present invention generally relates to dewatering compositions and methods of using the same. More specifically, the present invention provides environmentally friendly dewatering compositions and methods of dewatering, such as in mining, mineral processing, construction, and wastewater treatment processes. In certain embodiments, existing methods may incorporate the present compositions and methods.

[0008] Advantageously, the compositions and methods of the present invention can improve dewatering efficiency and reduce the use of chemicals required for dewatering, including the use of chemical surfactants. Therefore, the present invention can be used to shorten the time required for mining, water treatment (such as mining wastewater, municipal wastewater, rainwater, industrial wastewater) or production of various products (including, for example, paper or oil).

[0009] In some embodiments, the invention provides compositions comprising components derived from microorganisms. In some embodiments, the compositions comprise microbial biosurfactants. In some embodiments, the compositions comprise one or more biosurfactants, and optional other compounds, such as: water, chemical surfactants (e.g., including hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB)), polymers (e.g., including polymerized ferric sulfate and polyacrylamide), flocculants (e.g., including chitosan), clarifying agents, coagulants, filter aids, defoamers, inorganic salts (e.g., including aluminum (e.g., alum), iron, magnesium and calcium salts) or any combination thereof.

[0010] In certain embodiments, the biosurfactant in the composition is used in raw form. In addition to the biosurfactant, the raw form may include fermentation broth of the microorganism that cultivates the biosurfactant, residual microbial cell material or living or inactive microbial cells, residual nutrients and / or other microbial growth byproducts.

[0011] In some embodiments, the biosurfactant is used after extraction from the fermentation broth and optionally purification.

[0012] The biosurfactant according to the present invention can be glycolipids (such as sophorolipids, rhamnolipids, cellobiose lipids, mannoerythritol lipids and trehalose lipids), lipopeptides (such as surfactin, iturin, pancreas, arthrofactin and lichenin), flavonoid lipids, phospholipids (such as cardiolipin), fatty acid ester compounds, fatty acid ether compounds and / or high molecular weight polymers (such as lipoproteins, lipopolysaccharide-protein complexes and polysaccharide-protein-fatty acid complexes).

[0013] In certain specific embodiments, the biosurfactant is a sophorolipid (SLP), including linear SLP, lactone SLP, acetylated SLP, deacetylated SLP, salt-form SLP, esterified SLP derivatives, amino acid-SLP conjugates, and other SLP derivatives or isomers existing in nature and / or synthetically produced. In a preferred embodiment, the SLP is a linear SLP or a derivatized linear SLP.

[0014] In certain embodiments, the present invention provides a dehydration method, wherein the method comprises the following steps:

[0015] a) contacting a dehydrated composition comprising a biosurfactant with a liquid containing solid or semisolid particles; and

[0016] b) Remove water from solid or semi-solid particles in liquid.

[0017] In certain embodiments, water removal may be performed using centrifugation, filtration, gravity, or any combination thereof, including, for example, a plate and frame filter press or a belt filter press.

[0018] In some embodiments, the method can improve or increase the dehydration rate and / or the number of dehydrated particles, and the diameter of the dehydrated particles can be less than about 1 mm, about 500 μm, about 100 μm, about 10 μm, about 1 μm, about 100 μm, about 10 nm, or about 1 nm.

[0019] In some embodiments, the method includes contacting a dehydrating composition comprising a biosurfactant and optionally other ingredients, such as a hydrochemical surfactant, a polymer, a flocculant, a clarifier, a coagulant, a filter aid, a defoamer, or an inorganic salt. In certain embodiments, the dehydrating composition can be applied to the liquid for a period of time and / or until different volumes of the composition are applied. This step can be repeated as many times as necessary to achieve a certain dehydration rate, or until a desired amount of water or liquid is removed from the solid or semi-solid particles.

[0020] In certain embodiments, the dehydrating composition according to the present invention is effective due to the improvement and / or increase in the agglomeration rate or total amount of dehydrated particles from the liquid containing the colloidal suspension of the particles before physical water removal occurs. For example, in some embodiments, the sophorolipid forms micelles containing or linking particles, wherein the size of the micelles is less than 500 μm, less than 100 μm, less than 10 μm, less than 1 μm, less than 100 nm, less than 50 nm, less than 25 nm, less than 15 nm or less than 10 nm.

[0021] In certain embodiments, the methods of the invention result in at least a 25% increase in particle dehydration after a single treatment, preferably at least a 50% increase. In certain embodiments, the liquid composition may be treated multiple times to further increase the amount of dehydrated particles.

[0022] Advantageously, in certain embodiments, the dehydration composition according to the present invention can effectively dehydrate toxic liquids. In addition, the method of the present invention does not require complex equipment or high energy consumption, and the production of the composition can be carried out on site (e.g., in a mine or at a wastewater treatment facility). DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The present invention relates generally to particle dehydration. More specifically, the present invention provides environmentally friendly compositions and methods for dehydration (e.g., dehydrating liquids generated at mining sites, wastewater, and water generated by industrial activities). Thus, the present invention helps to improve the efficiency and efficacy of dehydration methods. Advantageously, the compositions and methods of the present invention improve the dehydration of particles using safe, environmentally friendly compositions.

[0024] Selected Definitions

[0025] As used herein, "administering" a composition or product means contacting it with a target or site so that the composition or product produces an effect on the target or site. This effect may be due to, for example, microbial growth and / or the action of biosurfactants or other microbial growth byproducts.

[0026] As used herein, a "biofilm" is a complex collection of microorganisms such as bacteria, yeast, or fungi in which cells adhere to each other and / or to a surface using an extracellular matrix. Cells in a biofilm are physiologically distinct from planktonic cells of the same organism, which are single cells that can float or swim in a liquid medium.

[0027] As used herein, "isolated" or "purified" nucleic acid molecules, polynucleotides, polypeptides, proteins, or organic compounds such as small molecules (such as those described below) are substantially free of other compounds with which they are essentially associated, such as cellular materials. Purified or isolated polynucleotides (ribonucleic acid (RNA) or deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)) do not contain genes or sequences located on both sides of them in their naturally occurring state. Purified or isolated polypeptides do not contain amino acids or sequences located on both sides of them in their naturally occurring state. An isolated microbial strain refers to a strain that is separated from the environment in which it exists in nature. Therefore, an isolated strain can exist as, for example, a biologically pure culture, or as a spore associated with a carrier (or other form of a strain).

[0028] In certain embodiments, the purified compound is at least 60% by weight of the compound of interest. Preferably, the preparation is at least 75% by weight of the compound of interest, more preferably at least 90%, and most preferably at least 98%. For example, the purified compound is at least 80%, 85%, 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 98%, 99% or 100% (w / w) of the weight of the desired compound. Purity can be measured by any appropriate standard method (e.g., column chromatography, thin layer chromatography, or high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis).

[0029] "Metabolite" refers to any substance produced by metabolism or necessary to participate in a specific metabolic process. A metabolite can be an organic compound that is a starting material, intermediate or final product of metabolism. Examples of metabolites include, but are not limited to, enzymes, acids, solvents, alcohols, proteins, vitamins, minerals, trace elements, amino acids, biopolymers and biosurfactants.

[0030] The scope provided herein should be understood as a shorthand for all numerical values ​​in the scope. For example, a scope of 1 to 20 can be understood as including any number, combination of numbers or sub-ranges from a group consisting of all intermediate decimal values ​​(e.g., 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8 and 1.9) between 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 and the aforementioned integers. About sub-ranges, "nested sub-ranges" extending from either end of the scope are particularly contemplated. For example, the nested sub-ranges of the example scope of 1 to 50 may include 1 to 10, 1 to 20, 1 to 30 and 1 to 40 in one direction, or include 50 to 40, 50 to 30, 50 to 20 and 50 to 10 in another direction.

[0031] As used herein, "decrease" refers to a negative change and "increase" refers to a positive change, wherein the negative or positive change is at least 0.001%, 0.01%, 0.1%, 0.5%, 1%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95% or 100%.

[0032] As used herein, "surfactant" refers to a compound that reduces the surface tension (or interfacial tension) between two liquids or between a liquid and a solid. Surfactants are used, for example, as detergents, wetting agents, emulsifiers, foaming agents and / or dispersants. A "biosurfactant" is a surface-active substance produced by living cells and / or from natural substrates.

[0033] Biosurfactants are a class of structurally diverse surface-active substances consisting of two parts: a polar (hydrophilic) portion and a non-polar (hydrophobic) group. Due to their amphiphilic structure, biosurfactants can, for example, increase the surface area of ​​hydrophobic insoluble substances, increase the water bioavailability of these substances, and change the properties of bacterial cell surfaces. Biosurfactants can also reduce the interfacial tension between water and oil, thereby reducing the hydrostatic pressure required to move the entrained liquid in order to overcome capillary action. Biosurfactants aggregate at interfaces, thereby reducing the interfacial tension, resulting in the formation of aggregated micellar structures in solution. The formation of micelles provides a physical mechanism to enable, for example, oil to mobilize in a flowing aqueous phase.

[0034] The ability of biosurfactants to reduce surface tension also makes them useful as antibacterial, antifungal and hemolytic agents, for example to control the growth of pests and / or microorganisms.

[0035] Typically, the hydrophilic group of a biosurfactant is a sugar (such as a monosaccharide, disaccharide, or polysaccharide) or a peptide, while the hydrophobic group is usually a fatty acid. Thus, there are countless potential variations of biosurfactant molecules based on, for example, the type of sugar, the number of sugars, the size of the peptide, which amino acids are in the peptide, the length of the fatty acid, the degree of saturation of the fatty acid, additional acetylation, additional functional groups, esterification, polarity, and the charge of the molecule.

[0036] These changes have resulted in a group of molecules comprising a variety of categories, including, for example, glycolipids (such as sophorolipids, rhamnolipids, cellobiose lipids, mannoerythritol lipids and trehalose lipids), lipopeptides (such as surfactin, iturin, pancreas, actin and lichenin), flavonoids, phospholipids (such as cardiolipin), fatty acid ester compounds and high molecular weight polymers (such as lipoproteins, lipopolysaccharide-protein complexes and polysaccharide-protein-fatty acid complexes). Each biosurfactant in each category can further include subtypes with further modified structures.

[0037] Similar to chemical surfactants, each biosurfactant molecule has its own HLB value that depends on its structure; however, unlike the production of chemical surfactants (which produces a single molecule with a single HLB value or range), a biosurfactant cycle typically produces a mixture of biosurfactant molecules (such as subtypes and their isomers).

[0038] The phrases "biosurfactant" and "biosurfactant molecule" include all forms, analogs, orthologs, isomers and natural and / or artificial modifications of any biosurfactant class (e.g., glycolipids) and / or its subtypes (e.g., sophorolipids).

[0039] The terms "sophorolipid", "sophorolipid molecule", "SLP" or "SLP molecule" used herein include all forms of SLP molecules and isomers thereof, including, for example, acidic (linear) SLP (ASL) and lactonic SLP (LSL). Also included are monoacetylated SLP, diacetylated SLP, esterified SLP, SLP with different hydrophobic chain lengths, cationic and / or anionic SLP attached with fatty acid-amino acid complexes, esterified SLP, SLP-metal complexes, SLP-salt derivatives (e.g., sodium salt of linear SLP) and others, including those described and / or not described in the present disclosure.

[0040] In certain embodiments, the glycolipid biosurfactant is a sophorolipid (SLP). Sophorolipids are glycolipid biosurfactants produced by various yeasts of the Starmerella branch, for example, cultivated in the presence of a hydrocarbon source of one or more fatty acids. SLP is generally composed of the disaccharide sophorose connected to a long-chain hydroxy fatty acid. They can include partially acetylated 2-O-β-D-pyranose glucopyranose-D-pyranose glucopyranose units, which are connected to 17-L-hydroxyoctadecanoic acid or 17-L-hydroxy-Δ9-octadecenoic acid with a β-glycosidic bond. Hydroxy fatty acids are generally 16 or 18 carbon atoms and may contain one or more unsaturated bonds. In addition, the sophorose residue can be acetylated at the 6-position and / or 6'-position. The fatty acid carboxyl group can be free (acidic or linear form (Formula 2)) or lactonized at the 4"-position (lactone acid form (Formula 1)). Bombus sphaeroides produces a special enzyme, called Bombus sphaeroides lactonase, which can catalyze the esterification reaction of linear SLP to produce lactone SLP.

[0041] In a preferred embodiment, the SLP according to the present invention is represented by general formula (1) and / or general formula (2), and is obtained as a collection of 30 or more structural homologues:

[0042]

[0043] Where R 1 and R 1’ Each represents a saturated hydrocarbon chain or a single or multiple (especially single) unsaturated hydrocarbon chain having 8 to 20, especially 12 to 18 carbon atoms, more preferably 14 to 18 carbon atoms, which may be linear or branched and may contain one or more hydroxyl groups, R 2 and R 2’ Each represents a hydrogen atom or a saturated alkyl functional group or a single or multiple (especially single) unsaturated alkyl functional group having 1 to 9 carbon atoms, more preferably 1 to 4 carbon atoms, which may be linear or branched and may contain one or more hydroxyl groups, R 3 , R 3’ , R 4 and R 4’ Each represents a hydrogen atom or -COCH3.

[0044] The composition used according to the present method may contain more than one form of SLP, including linear SLP and intralipidic SLP. The SLP may be non-acetylated, monoacetylated and / or diacetylated SLP.

[0045] In certain specific embodiments, the composition comprises a SLP according to formula (1) (linear SLP), wherein R 1 and / or R 2is acetyl, and wherein R 3 Derived from stearic, oleic and / or linoleic fatty acids.

[0046] SLP is usually produced by yeast, such as yeast of the genus Stamosaccharomyces and / or yeast of the genus Candida, such as Stamosaccharomyces bombus (Candida), Candida honey, Candida batista, Candida floridana, Candida riodocensis, Candida astrae and / or Candida kuoi. SLP has environmental compatibility, high biodegradability, low toxicity, high selectivity and specific activity under a wide range of temperature, pH and salinity conditions. In addition, in some embodiments, the advantage of SLP is its small micelle size, which helps to promote the movement of micelles and compounds contained therein through nanoscale pores and spaces. In certain embodiments, the micelle size of SLP is less than 100nm, less than 50nm, less than 20nm, less than 15nm, less than 10nm or less than 5nm.

[0047] In certain embodiments, the glycolipid is a rhamnolipid. Rhamnolipid includes a glycosyl head group (i.e., rhamnose) portion and a 3-(hydroxyalkanoyloxy) alkanoic acid (HAA) fatty acid tail (e.g., 3-hydroxydecanoic acid). There are two main subtypes of rhamnolipids, i.e., monorhamnolipids and dirhamnolipids, which include one or two rhamnose portions, respectively. The length and branching degree of the HAA portion will vary, depending on, for example, the growth medium and environmental conditions. Submerged cultures of Pseudomonas (e.g., Pseudomonas aeruginosa) show the highest accumulation of rhamnolipids (RLPs).

[0048] The rhamnolipid according to the present invention may have the following structure according to general formula (3):

[0049]

[0050] Where m is 2, 1 or 0,

[0051] n is 1 or 0

[0052] R 1 and R 2 are, independently of one another, identical or different organic functional groups having 2 to 24, preferably 5 to 13, carbon atoms, in particular substituted or unsubstituted, branched or unbranched alkyl functions, which may also be unsaturated,

[0053] The alkyl functional group is a linear saturated alkyl functional group having 8 to 12 carbon atoms, or a nonyl functional group or a decyl functional group or a mixture thereof.

[0054] According to the present invention, the salts of these compounds are also included. In the present invention, the term "dirhamnolipid" is understood as a compound of the above formula wherein n is 1 or a salt thereof. Accordingly, "monorhamnolipid" is understood as a compound of the above formula wherein n is 0 or a salt thereof in the present invention. In certain specific embodiments, the composition comprises a mixture of monorhamnolipid and dirhamnolipid.

[0055] As used herein, "dewatering" refers to the process of removing water from solid (ie, suspended solids) or semisolid particles, for example by reducing the water content of the particles, which produces a filter cake.

[0056] As used herein, a "semi-solid" or "quasi-solid" particle is a material having an intermediate viscosity and hardness between a liquid and a solid.

[0057] As used herein, "ore beneficiation" refers to the process by which waste material is removed from the product of interest (eg, element, compound, mineral).

[0058] As used herein, "ore" refers to a naturally occurring solid material from which valuable substances, minerals and / or metals can be advantageously extracted. Ore is typically mined from a ore deposit, which is composed of ore minerals containing valuable substances. "Gangue" minerals are minerals present in a ore deposit but do not contain valuable substances. Examples of ore deposits include hydrothermal deposits, magmatic deposits, laterite deposits, volcanogenic deposits, metamorphic reconstructed deposits, carbonate-alkaline igneous rock-related deposits, placer deposits, residual deposits, sedimentary deposits, sedimentary hydrothermal deposits, and meteorite crater-related deposits. However, ore as defined herein may also include concentrates or tailings.

[0059] As used herein, "leaching" refers to the process of extracting metals from ores by aqueous solutions, including, for example, ammonia leaching, alkaline leaching, acid leaching, cyanidation (i.e., cyanide leaching), or thiosulfate leaching. As used herein, "cyanidation" refers to the process of converting gold in an ore into a water-soluble coordination complex using an aqueous cyanide (including, for example, sodium cyanide, potassium cyanide, or calcium cyanide).

[0060] As used herein, "colloid" or "colloidal particles" refers to a mixture in which an insoluble substance is dispersed or suspended in another substance. The insoluble substance is usually dispersed in a liquid.

[0061] The transitional term "comprising," which is synonymous with "including" or "containing," is inclusive or open-ended and does not exclude other unrecited elements or method steps. In contrast, the transitional phrase "consisting of" excludes any element, step, or ingredient not specified in the claim. The transitional phrase "consisting essentially of" limits the scope of the claim to the specified materials or steps "and those materials or steps that do not materially affect the basic and novel characteristics of the claimed invention." The use of the term "consisting of" contemplates other embodiments of "consisting of" or "consisting essentially of the recited elements."

[0062] Unless otherwise specified or obvious from the context, the term "or" as used herein should be understood to be inclusive. Unless otherwise specified or obvious from the context, the terms "a", "and" and "the" as used herein can be understood to be singular or plural.

[0063] Unless otherwise specified or apparent from the context, the term "about" as used herein is understood to be within the normal tolerance range in the art, such as within 2 standard deviations of the mean. About can be understood to be within 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, 0.1%, 0.05% or 0.01% of the stated value. Unless otherwise clearly indicated in the context, all numerical values ​​provided herein are modified by the term about.

[0064] In any definition of a variable herein, the recitation of a list of chemical groups includes definitions of that variable as any single group or combination of the listed groups. The recitation of an embodiment for a variable or aspect herein includes that embodiment as any single embodiment or in combination with any other embodiment or portion thereof.

[0065] All references cited herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety.

[0066] Dehydration composition

[0067] In certain embodiments, the present invention provides compositions comprising components derived from microorganisms. In certain embodiments, the compositions include a microbial biosurfactant. In certain embodiments, the compositions include one or more biosurfactants and optional other compounds, such as water, chemical surfactants, polymers, flocculants, clarifiers, coagulants, filter aids, defoamers, inorganic salts, or any combination thereof.

[0068] In certain embodiments, the chemical surfactant of the dehydrating composition is a detergent, a wetting agent, an emulsifier, a foaming agent and / or a dispersant. In certain embodiments, the chemical surfactant includes, for example, hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB).

[0069] In certain embodiments, the polymer may include a natural or synthetic polymer, a water-soluble polymer, a cationic polymer, an anionic polymer, or a nonionic polymer. For example, the polymer may be an anionic polyacrylamide, a modified polyacrylamide, a nonionic polyacrylamide, a starch, a guar gum, a Moringa seed extract, a purified water Strychnos nux vomica seed extract, a gelatin (such as fish glue), an alginate (such as sodium alginate), or a polymerized ferric sulfate.

[0070] In certain embodiments, for example, filter aids include cellulose fibers, diatomaceous earth, charcoal, expanded perlite, and asbestos fibers. Filter aids can be chemicals that aid in solid-liquid separation by changing the surface properties of minerals, elements, or other substances to increase water repellency. Filter aids impart hydrophobic properties to particles, thereby minimizing interstitial water. Flocculants are a type of filter aid; by binding ultrafine particles together, they prevent them from binding to the filter media. In certain embodiments, flocculants include, for example, chitosan. In certain embodiments, water-absorbing polymers are used to fix water into a gel, thereby improving the handling properties of the concentrate, although this function is not strictly dehydration.

[0071] In certain embodiments, inorganic salts include, for example, aluminum salts (eg, alum), iron salts, magnesium salts, and calcium salts.

[0072] In certain embodiments, the dewatered composition includes a product based on a microorganism, which includes a biosurfactant used in raw form. In addition to the biosurfactant, the raw form can include a fermentation broth, residual microbial cell material or live or inactive microbial cells, residual nutrients and / or other microbial growth byproducts of the microorganisms that are cultured therein to produce the biosurfactant. For example, by weight, the product can be at least 1%, 5%, 10%, 25%, 50%, 75% or 100% broth. For example, by weight, the amount of the biomass in the product can be anywhere from 0% to 100% (including all percentages therebetween).

[0073] In certain embodiments, the biosurfactant is extracted from the fermentation broth and optionally purified prior to use.

[0074] The biosurfactant according to the present invention can be a glycolipid (such as sophorolipids, rhamnolipids, cellobiose lipids, mannoerythritol lipids and trehalose lipids), a lipopeptide (such as surfactin, iturin, pancreas, actin and lichenin), a flavonoid, a phospholipid (such as cardiolipin), a fatty acid ester compound, a fatty acid ether compound and / or a high molecular weight polymer (such as lipoprotein, lipopolysaccharide-protein complex and polysaccharide-protein-fatty acid complex).

[0075] In certain specific embodiments, the biosurfactant is a sophorolipid (SLP), including linear SLP, lactone SLP, acetylated SLP, deacetylated SLP, salt-form SLP derivatives, esterified SLP derivatives, amino acid-SLP conjugates, and other SLP derivatives or isomers present in nature and / or synthetic production. In a preferred embodiment, the SLP is a linear SLP or a derivatized linear SLP. In certain embodiments, the subject composition may contain lactone and linear SLP, at least about 50%, about 55%, about 60%, about 65%, about 70%, about 75%, about 80%, about 85%, about 90% or about 95% of the SLP constitutes a linear form, and the rest constitutes a lactone form.

[0076] In some embodiments, the biosurfactant may be added to the composition at 0.01% to 99.9%, 0.1% to 90%, 0.5% to 80%, 0.75% to 70%, 1.0% to 50%, 1.5% to 25%, or 2.0% to 15% relative to the total dehydrated composition (by weight).

[0077] In another embodiment, the purified biosurfactant may be added with an acceptable carrier, wherein the biosurfactant may be present in a concentration of 0.001 to 50% (v / v), preferably 0.01 to 20% (v / v), more preferably 0.02 to 5% (v / v).

[0078] In some embodiments, the biosurfactant can be included in the composition at 0.01 to 100000 ppm, 0.05 to 10000 ppm, 0.1 to 1000 ppm, 0.5 to 750 ppm, 1.0 to 500 ppm, 2.0 to 250 ppm, or 3.0 to 100 ppm relative to the amount of liquid being treated.

[0079] In certain embodiments, the chemical surfactant of the dehydrating composition is a detergent, a wetting agent, an emulsifier, a foaming agent and / or a dispersant. In some embodiments, the chemical surfactant can be included in the composition at 0.01% to 99.9%, 0.1% to 90%, 0.5% to 80%, 0.75% to 70%, 1.0% to 50%, 1.5% to 25% or 2.0% to 15% relative to the weight of the total dehydrating composition.

[0080] The dehydrated composition may further comprise other additives (e.g., carriers), other microbial-based compositions, additional biosurfactants, enzymes, catalysts, solvents, salts, buffers, chelating agents, acids, emulsifiers, lubricants, solubility control agents, preservatives, stabilizers, UV inhibitors, viscosity modifiers, preservatives, tracers, and other microorganisms and other ingredients specific for the intended use.

[0081] In certain embodiments, the chelating agent can be ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), phosphonate, dithiodimethic acid (DMSA), diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA), N-acetylcysteine, n-hydroxyethylethylenediaminetriacetic acid (HEDTA), organic acids with more than one coordinating group (such as erythrine), STPP (sodium tripolyphosphate, Na5P3O10), trisodium phosphate (TSP), water, carbohydrates, organic acids with more than one coordinating group (such as citric acid), lipids, steroids, amino acids or related compounds (such as glutathione), peptides, phosphates, nucleotides, tetrapyrroles, ferrochlore, ionophores, phenols, sodium citrate, sodium gluconate , ethylenediamine disuccinic acid (EDDS), iminodisuccinic acid (IDS), L-glutamic acid diacetic acid (GLDA), GLDA-Na4, methylglycine diacetic acid (MGDA), polyaspartic acid (PASA), hemoglobin, chlorophyll, lipophilic β-diketone, and (14,16)-triacontanedione, ethylenediamine-N,N'-diglutaric acid (EDDG), ethylenediamine-N,N'-dimalonic acid (EDDM), 3-hydroxy-2,2-iminodisuccinic acid (HIDS), 2-hydroxyethyliminodiacetic acid (HEIDA), pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid (PDA), trimethylglycine (TMG), Tiron or any combination thereof, but not limited thereto.

[0082] Dehydration method

[0083] In certain embodiments, the present invention provides a method for dewatering solids or semi-solids from a variety of sources including, for example, mines, quarries, wastewaters, agricultural and industrial sites.

[0084] In certain embodiments, the present invention provides a method for dewatering mine tailings. The method comprises adding the present composition to the tailings and removing water from solid or semi-solid particles. By dewatering the tailings, the dehydrated particles can reach a higher concentration. In a preferred embodiment, the tailings are low-grade tailings, wherein the content of the product of interest (such as a metal, mineral, compound or mined element) in the tailings is less than about 50%, about 40%, about 35%, about 30% or about 25%, and the remainder is gangue.

[0085] In some embodiments, the mining site can be a coal mine, an iron ore mine (such as taconite), a copper mine, a copper-nickel mine, a tin mine, a nickel mine, a gold mine, a silver mine, a molybdenum mine, an aluminum mine (such as bauxite, kyanite), a lead-zinc mine, a tungsten mine, a phosphate mine, a potash mine, a mica mine, a bentonite mine, or a zinc mine. The mine can be an underground mine, an open-pit mine, an alluvial mine, or an in-situ mine. In some embodiments, mining activities can derive various toxic compounds. In some embodiments, according to the present method, a method for removing the toxic compounds is provided by contacting the dehydrated compounds with various water flows, pipes, pumps, water storage areas, or other aquatic environments. For example, toxic compounds can include cyanide, sulfur-containing minerals, soluble iron, and heavy metals (such as molybdenum, tungsten, chromium, manganese, nickel, arsenic, and vanadium). In certain embodiments, a quarry may extract chalk, clay, cinder, coal, sand, gravel, coquina, diabase, gabbro, granite, gritstone, gypsum, limestone, marble, ore, phosphate rock, quartz, sandstone, slate, travertine, or any combination thereof.

[0086] In certain embodiments, water may be pumped or otherwise added to a geological formation containing an element, mineral, compound, or other material of interest prior to extraction of the mineral, compound, or other material of interest. In certain embodiments, the present compositions and methods may be used to dewater an extracted slurry.

[0087] In certain embodiments, the present compositions and methods can be used to extract liquid from a mine or quarry by applying the composition to the liquid in the site before the liquid is pumped or otherwise removed from the site. In certain embodiments, the source of water in a mine or quarry can be groundwater or precipitation.

[0088] In certain embodiments, the microorganism-containing and / or biosurfactant-containing compositions can improve the agglomeration of particles with surfaces, for example, causing coal mining toxic byproducts to agglomerate with each other.

[0089] In certain embodiments, the present methods and compositions can alter the surface tension of a liquid containing solid particles from a source, such as a coal mine. In certain embodiments, a composition comprising a biosurfactant can interact with the surface and interior of a solid, such as coal in a liquid. In certain embodiments, a biosurfactant can reduce the surface tension of a liquid, reduce the interfacial tension between a liquid and solid particles, increase the hydrophobicity of a solid, or a combination thereof, thereby increasing the dehydration efficiency by, for example, reducing the water content of the dehydrated particles by a greater amount relative to dehydrated solids not contacted with the dehydration composition of the present invention. In certain embodiments, the dehydration efficiency can be increased by at least about 5%, 10%, 15%, or about 25%.

[0090] In certain embodiments, the method can be used for dehydrating pulverized coal. In certain embodiments, the pulverized coal comprises coal particles having a diameter of less than about 0.5 mm. If not dehydrated, the pulverized coal has a high water content, which reduces the heat content of the coal and increases the transportation cost of the coal. In certain embodiments, dehydrating the pulverized coal comprises mixing the pulverized coal with coarse coal (e.g., having a diameter greater than 0.5 mm), contacting the pulverized coal and coarse coal with a dehydrating composition of the present invention, and filtering, centrifuging, gravity separating or otherwise separating water from the coal.

[0091] In certain embodiments, the microorganism-containing and / or biosurfactant-containing composition can form a layer of aggregated particles around and / or between particles suspended in a liquid.

[0092] These compositions can be applied to liquids or containers containing liquids that exist in a range of temperatures and aquatic environments (e.g., streams, rivers, waterways, oceans, seas, lakes, ponds, runoff areas, isolation ponds, pipes, centrifuges, filters, irons, screens, cones, dewaterers, classifiers, scrapers, hydrocyclones, blenders, drums, pans, or wastewater treatment / storage tanks). In certain embodiments, the dewatering composition can be added to a container containing a liquid before the liquid composition is added to the container.

[0093] The dehydrating composition may be applied to the liquid and optionally mixed by adding, pouring or combining.

[0094] In some embodiments, the time period that the dewatering composition can be in contact with the liquid or container is about 1 second to about 1 year, about 1 minute to about 1 year, about 1 minute to about 6 months, about 1 minute to about 1 month, about 1 minute to about 1 week, about 1 minute to about 48 hours, about 30 minutes to 40 hours, or preferably about 12 hours to 24 hours. In some embodiments, these methods include applying the liquid or solid form of the dewatering composition to the liquid during the time period of producing the liquid containing the suspended particles, or until the amount of the liquid is reduced to an amount determined to be satisfactory or safe (the amount can be easily determined by those skilled in the art). The amount of water that is considered to be acceptable and / or safe depends on the environment. For example, in a mining site without toxic compounds, the acceptable amount of particle dehydration may be lower than the acceptable amount of particle dehydration in a mining site that produces toxic compounds (requiring expensive treatment methods). Therefore, removing a large amount of water from toxic compounds before disposal can reduce costs.

[0095] In certain embodiments, the dehydrating composition is applied in an amount of about 0.00001 to 15%, about 0.00001 to 10%, about 0.0001 to 5%, about 0.001 to 3%, about 0.01%, or about 1% by volume based on the amount of liquid treated.

[0096] In certain embodiments, the methods of the invention result in at least a 25% increase in particle dehydration, preferably at least a 50% increase, after one treatment. In certain embodiments, the liquid may be treated multiple times to further increase the amount of dehydrated particles.

[0097] In certain embodiments, the dehydration composition according to the present invention is effective due to the adhesion of suspended particles mediated by amphiphilic compounds. In some embodiments, sophorolipids or other biosurfactants are used as carriers to promote the dehydration of particles and / or the adhesion of particles to surfaces and / or objects. For example, in some embodiments, sophorolipids form micelles containing particles, wherein the size of the micelles is less than 1 mm, 100 μm, 50 μm, 20 μm, 10 μm, 1 μm, 100 nm, less than 50 nm, less than 25 nm, less than 15 nm or less than 10 nm. The small size and amphiphilic nature of the micelles can enhance the adhesion of the particles, resulting in larger particle aggregation, allowing for a more efficient dehydration process.

[0098] In certain embodiments, the dewatering composition can be used in a method for processing an ore, a slurry, or other products obtained by mining. In certain embodiments, the dewatering composition can be used for pre-milling dewatering, concentrate dewatering, tailings dewatering, tailings filling, middling dewatering, or any combination thereof.

[0099] In certain embodiments, the dehydration composition can be used in the mineral processing process, especially low-grade ores containing low-concentration elements or other products of interest (such as gold or silver). In order to extract the elements or compounds of interest, the ore needs to be crushed and ground, and the elements or products of interest are pre-concentrated or separated from the ore by flotation or gravity separation (i.e., sedimentation). In certain embodiments, by adding the dehydration composition in the mineral processing process, the sedimentation rate of the concentrate can be accelerated and the dehydration efficiency can be improved.

[0100] In certain embodiments, the dewatered composition can be used in a leaching process, such as a gold cyanidation process. The leaching extraction process includes leaching (such as cyanide leaching), washing and filtering the leached slurry, extracting the metal from the leachate or slurry, and smelting the finished product.

[0101] In certain embodiments, the dewatering composition can be used in a method of washing and filtering a leached slurry, wherein the dewatering composition increases the dewatering rate of the leached slurry. In certain embodiments, the dewatering composition can dewater heavy metals and metalloids in mining tailings, such as arsenic, cadmium, cobalt, copper, mercury, manganese, nickel, uranium, and zinc, which may pose significant potential ecological and human health risks associated with exposure to metals and metalloids from contaminated soils surrounding mining tailings storage sites.

[0102] In certain embodiments, the dewatering composition can remove precious liquor from leached solids in a hydrometallurgical process.

[0103] In certain embodiments, the dewatering composition can be used in a method for treating industrial wastewater and sewage containing water-soluble organic matter. The purification process uses activated sludge treatment to remove soluble organic matter. In certain embodiments, activated sludge treatment uses the growth of microorganisms for treatment, so sludge dewatering treatment is usually used to reduce the amount of water. In certain embodiments, sludge dewatering can use traditional dehydrating agents. In certain embodiments, the present dewatering composition can replace synthetic polymer dehydrating agents, or be used in combination with polymer dehydrating agents to aggregate and dehydrate sludge. Cationic dehydrating agents can neutralize the negative charge on the surface of colloidal particles in sludge and can bridge between particles to form large and strong floccules that are easy to dewater. Sludge containing floccules can be dehydrated by sludge dewatering equipment, separated into solids (called sludge cakes), and then disposed of by landfill, incineration or composting. In certain embodiments, the dewatering method can reduce the water content in the sludge by at least about 50%, about 60%, about 70% or about 80%.

[0104] In certain embodiments, the dewatering composition can be used in various industrial processes, including in the manufacture or processing of food, beverages, oil sands, and paper. In product manufacturing processes, the dewatering composition can be primarily used to treat wastewater (e.g., sludge dewatering), where suspended particles (e.g., sludge, phosphate-containing particles, residual oil sands in oil sand tailings) are aggregated and liquid is then removed from the particles before the water is discharged or stored.

[0105] In certain embodiments, the present composition can be used in a filtration process for separating liquids from solids or semi-solids more completely than can be achieved by sedimentation alone. It is primarily used for dewatering flotation concentrates and tailings, for example, to clarify decanted solutions; to collect precipitated solids; or to remove precious liquor from leached solids in hydrometallurgical processes.

[0106] Filtration usually involves pneumatic technology. Of the various types of filters, the most common is the vacuum filter. A vacuum is applied to a membrane cloth mounted horizontally on a rotating drum or disc, with the lower part of the cloth immersed in the slurry in the tank. The feed slurry or slurry is kept in suspension by a rotating agitator. A pump sucks the liquid through the filter, leaving behind the agglomerated solids. Before the drum or disc reaches the tank again, the vacuum is turned off and the filter cake is expelled by pressurized air or scraped into a discharge tank by a scraper.

[0107] Advantageously, in some embodiments, dewatering compositions according to the present invention provide enhanced or improved particle dewatering efficiency with limited negative environmental impact. In addition, the method of the present invention does not require complex equipment or high energy consumption, and the production of dewatering compositions can be carried out on site (including, for example, mines or industrial sites). In some embodiments, this dewatering composition can cause the use of chemical surfactants, synthetic dehydrating agents or other potentially harmful chemicals for dehydration to be reduced.

[0108] Production of microbial-based products

[0109] In certain embodiments, the present invention provides methods for culturing microorganisms and producing microbial metabolites and / or other byproducts of microbial growth. The present invention further utilizes culture techniques suitable for culturing microorganisms and producing microbial metabolites on a desired scale. These culture techniques include, but are not limited to, submerged culture / fermentation, solid state fermentation (SSF), and modifications, mixing, and / or combinations thereof.

[0110] Microorganisms can be, for example, bacteria, yeasts and / or fungi. These microorganisms can be natural microorganisms or genetically modified microorganisms. For example, microorganisms can be modified with specific genes to exhibit specific characteristics. These microorganisms can also be mutants of the desired strain. As used herein, "mutant" refers to a strain that is a genetic variant or subtype of a reference microorganism, wherein the mutant has one or more genetic variations (e.g., point mutations, missense mutations, nonsense mutations, deletions, duplications, frameshift mutations, or repeat amplifications) compared to the reference microorganism. The procedures for making mutants are well known in the art of microbial technology. For example, ultraviolet mutagenesis and nitrosoguanidine are widely used for this purpose.

[0111] In certain embodiments, the microorganism is capable of producing amphiphilic molecules, enzymes, proteins and / or biopolymers. In particular, microbial biosurfactants can be produced by a variety of microorganisms, such as bacteria, fungi and yeast, including, for example, Agrobacterium (such as Agrobacterium radiobacter); Arthrobacter; Aspergillus; Pullulan (such as Pullulan); Azotobacter (such as Azotobacter vinelandii, Azotobacter rotundus); Azospirillum (such as Azospirillum brasiliensis); Bacillus (such as Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus licheniformis, Bacillus firmus, Bacillus laterosporus); , Bacillus megaterium); Blakeslea; Candida (e.g., Candida albicans, Candida rugosa, Candida tropicalis, Candida lipolytica, Candida torulopsis); Clostridium (e.g., Clostridium butyricum, Clostridium tyrobutyricum, Clostridium acetobutylicum, and Clostridium beijerinckii); Campylobacter; Corynebacterium; Cryptococcus; Debaryomyces (e.g., Debaryomyces hansenii); Entomophthora; Flavobacterium; Gordonia; Hansenula; Hansenula sporangiophora (e.g., Hansenula vinifera); Issatchenia; Kru Saccharomyces; Meyer yeast (such as Meyer yeast guillemot); Mortierella; Mycorrhiza; Mycobacterium; Nocardia; Pichia (such as Pichia anomala, Pichia guillemot, Pichia occidentalis, Pichia kudriavzi); Phycomyces; Pythium; Pseudomonas (such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas chlororaphis, Pseudomonas putida, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Pseudomonas fragariae, Pseudomonas ice nucleus); Candida (such as Candida aphidosa); Ralstonia (such as R. eutropha) and / or Zygosaccharomyces (e.g., Zygosaccharomyces bailii).

[0112] In a preferred embodiment, the microorganism is a yeast of the genus Stamosaccharomyces and / or a yeast of the genus Candida, such as Stamosaccharomyces bombus (Candida), Candida mellifera, Candida batista, Candida floridana, Candida riodocensis, Candida asteroidea and / or Candida kuoi. In a specific embodiment, the microorganism is Stamosaccharomyces bombus, such as strain ATCC 22214.

[0113] As used herein, "fermentation" refers to the cultivation or growth of cells under controlled conditions. Growth can be aerobic or anaerobic. In a preferred embodiment, microorganisms are cultured using SSF and / or a modified version thereof.

[0114] In one embodiment, the invention provides materials and methods for producing biomass (eg, living cell material), extracellular metabolites (eg, small molecules and excreted proteins), residual nutrients, and / or intracellular components (eg, enzymes and other proteins).

[0115] The microorganism growth container used according to the present invention can be any fermenter or culture reactor used in industry. In one embodiment, the container can have a functional operating device / sensor, or can be connected to a functional operating device / sensor to measure important factors in the culture process, such as pH, oxygen, pressure, temperature, humidity, microorganism density and / or metabolite concentration.

[0116] In another embodiment, the container can also monitor the growth of microorganisms in the container (e.g., measuring the number of cells and the stage of growth). Alternatively, samples can be taken from the container every day and counted by techniques known in the art (such as dilution plating). Dilution plating is a simple technique for estimating the number of organisms in a sample. This technique can also provide an index by which different environments or treatments can be compared.

[0117] In one embodiment, the method includes supplementing the culture with a nitrogen source. The nitrogen source can be, for example, potassium nitrate, ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate, ammonium phosphate, ammonia, urea and / or ammonium chloride. These nitrogen sources can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

[0118] This method can provide oxygenation for the growing culture. One embodiment is to remove the low oxygen air using a slow flow of air and introduce oxygen-rich air. In the case of submerged fermentation, the oxygen-rich air can be ambient air that is replenished daily by a mechanical device that includes an impeller for mechanically agitating the liquid and an air distributor for providing bubbles to the liquid to dissolve oxygen into the liquid.

[0119] The method further comprises supplementing the culture with a carbon source. The carbon source is usually: carbohydrates, such as glucose, sucrose, lactose, fructose, trehalose, mannose, mannitol and / or maltose; organic acids, such as acetic acid, fumaric acid, citric acid, propionic acid, malic acid, malonic acid and / or pyruvic acid; alcohols, such as ethanol, propanol, butanol, pentanol, hexanol, isobutanol and / or glycerol; oils, such as soybean oil, rapeseed oil, rice bran oil, olive oil, corn oil, sesame oil and / or linseed oil; etc. These carbon sources can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

[0120] In one embodiment, the growth factor and micronutrient of microorganism are contained in the culture medium. When the culture can not produce the microorganism of required whole vitamin, this is particularly preferred. Inorganic nutrients may also be included in the culture medium, including trace elements such as iron, zinc, copper, manganese, molybdenum and / or cobalt. In addition, the source of vitamins, essential amino acids and trace elements may be included, which is in the form of flour or meal (such as corn flour) or extract (such as yeast extract, potato extract, beef extract, soybean extract, banana peel extract, etc.) or purified form. Amino acids useful for the biosynthesis of proteins may also be included.

[0121] In one embodiment, inorganic salts may also be included. Available inorganic salts may be potassium dihydrogen phosphate, dipotassium hydrogen phosphate, disodium hydrogen phosphate, magnesium sulfate, magnesium chloride, ferric sulfate, ferric chloride, manganese sulfate, manganese chloride, zinc sulfate, lead chloride, copper sulfate, calcium chloride, sodium chloride, calcium carbonate and / or sodium carbonate. These inorganic salts may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

[0122] In some embodiments, the culturing method may further include adding additional acid and / or antimicrobial agents to the culture medium before and / or during the culturing process. Antimicrobial agents or antibiotics are used to protect the culture from contamination.

[0123] Additionally, antifoaming agents may be added to prevent the formation and / or accumulation of foam during submerged culture.

[0124] The pH of the mixture should be appropriate for the microorganism of interest. Buffers and pH adjusters (such as carbonates and phosphates) can be used to stabilize the pH around the preferred value. When metal ions are present in higher concentrations, it may be necessary to use a chelating agent in the culture medium.

[0125] The microorganisms can be grown in planktonic form or as a biofilm. In the case of a biofilm, there can be a substrate within the container on which the microorganisms can grow in a biofilm state. The system may also have the ability to, for example, apply a stimulus (such as shear stress) to promote and / or improve the growth characteristics of the biofilm.

[0126] In one embodiment, the culture method of the microorganism is carried out at about 5° to about 100° C., preferably 15 to 60° C., more preferably 25 to 50° C. In another embodiment, the culture can be continuously carried out at a constant temperature. In another embodiment, the culture may be affected by temperature changes.

[0127] In one embodiment, the method and the equipment used in the culture process are sterile. The culture equipment (such as a reactor / container) can be separated from the sterilization unit (such as an autoclave), but connected thereto. The culture equipment can also have a sterilization unit that is sterilized in situ before starting inoculation. The air can be sterilized by methods known in the art. For example, ambient air can pass through at least one filter before being introduced into the container. In other embodiments, the culture medium can be pasteurized, or optionally not heated at all, making full use of the application of low water activity and low pH to control unwanted bacterial growth.

[0128] In one embodiment, the present invention further provides a method for producing microbial metabolites (e.g., biosurfactants, enzymes, proteins, ethanol, lactic acid, beta-glucans, peptides, metabolic intermediates, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and lipids) and optionally purifying metabolites by culturing the microbial strain of the present invention under conditions suitable for growth and metabolite production. For example, the metabolite content produced by the method can be at least 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, or 90%.

[0129] Microbial growth byproducts produced by the microorganisms of interest may be retained in the microorganisms or secreted into the growth medium. The medium may contain compounds that stabilize the activity of the microbial growth byproducts.

[0130] For example, the biomass content of the fermentation medium may be from 5 g / l to 180 g / l or more, or from 10 g / l to 150 g / l.

[0131] For example, the cell concentration can be at least 1 x 10 6 Up to 1x 10 12 , 1x 10 7 Up to 1x 10 11 , 1x 10 8 Up to 1x 10 10 or 1x 10 9 CFU / ml.

[0132] The methods and apparatus for culturing microorganisms and producing microbial byproducts can be performed in a batch, in a quasi-continuous process, or in a continuous process.

[0133] In one embodiment, once the culture is complete (eg, a desired cell density or density of a particular metabolite is reached), all of the microbial culture composition is removed. In this batch procedure, after the first batch is harvested, a completely new batch is started.

[0134] In another embodiment, only a portion of the fermentation product is removed at any time. In this embodiment, the biomass with living cells, spores, conidia, hyphae and / or mycelium remains in the container as an inoculant for a new culture batch. The removed composition can be a cell-free culture medium, or contain cells, spores or other reproductive propagules, and / or a combination thereof. In this way, a quasi-continuous system is created.

[0135] Advantageously, the method does not require complex equipment or high energy consumption. The microorganisms of interest can be cultured and utilized on site, either on a small or large scale, even while still mixed with their culture medium.

[0136] In certain embodiments, the present invention provides a "microorganism-based composition", which means a composition that includes components produced by the growth of microorganisms or other cell cultures. Therefore, a microorganism-based composition can include the microorganisms themselves and / or byproducts of microorganism growth. The microorganism can be in a vegetative state, in spore form, in hyphae form, in any other propagule form, or a mixture of these forms. The microorganism can be planktonic or in a biofilm form, or a mixture of the two. Growth byproducts can be, for example, metabolites, cell membrane components, expressed proteins, and / or other cellular components. The microorganism can be intact or lysed. The microorganism can be present in the composition or removed from the composition. The microorganism can be present in the microorganism-based composition together with the broth in which they grow. For example, the cells can be present at a concentration of at least 1x 10 per ml of the composition. 3 , 1x 10 4 , 1x 10 5 , 1x 10 6 , 1x 10 7 , 1x 10 8 , 1x 10 9 , 1x 10 10 , 1x 10 11 , 1x10 12 , 1x 10 13 CFU or more.

[0137] The present invention further provides "based on microbial products", i.e., products that are applied in practice to achieve the desired result. Based on microbial products can be only compositions based on microorganisms gathered in the microbial culture process. Or, based on microbial products can include further components that have been added. For example, these additional components can include stabilizers, acids, buffers, carriers (such as water, saline solutions or any other suitable carriers), added nutrients that support the further growth of microorganisms, non-nutritional growth enhancers and / or preparations that help to track microorganisms and / or compositions in the environment of application. Based on microbial products can also include mixtures based on compositions based on microorganisms. Based on microbial products can also include one or more components of compositions based on microorganisms that have been processed in some way (such as but not limited to filtration, centrifugation, cracking, drying, purification, etc.).

[0138] A microbial-based product of the present invention is simply a fermentation medium containing the microorganism and / or microbial metabolites produced by the microorganism and / or any residual nutrients. The fermentation product can be used directly without extraction or purification. If necessary, extraction and purification can be easily achieved using standard extraction and / or purification methods or techniques described in the literature.

[0139] The microorganisms in the microbial-based products can be in active or inactive form, and can also be vegetative cells, reproductive spores, conidia, mycelium, hyphae or any other form of microbial propagation bodies. The microbial-based products can also contain any combination of these forms of microorganisms.

[0140] In one embodiment, different microbial strains are cultured separately and then mixed together to produce a microbial-based product.The microorganisms may optionally be mixed with a culture medium in which they were grown and dried prior to mixing.

[0141] Microbial-based products can be used without further stabilization, preservation, and storage. Advantageously, direct use of these microbial-based products can maintain high microbial viability, reduce the possibility of contamination by foreign agents and unwanted microorganisms, and maintain the activity of microbial growth byproducts.

[0142] After the microorganism-based composition is harvested from the growth container, further components can be added when the harvested product is placed in a container or otherwise transported for use. For example, the additive can be a buffer, a carrier, other microorganism-based compositions produced in the same or different facilities, a viscosity modifier, a preservative, a microbial growth nutrient, a surfactant, an emulsifier, a lubricant, a solubility control agent, a tracking agent, a solvent, a bactericide, an antibiotic, a pH adjuster, a chelating agent, a stabilizer, an ultraviolet light inhibitor, other microorganisms, and other suitable additives commonly used in such preparations.

[0143] Alternatively, the product is stored before use. The storage time is preferably short. Therefore, the storage time can be less than 60 days, 45 days, 30 days, 20 days, 15 days, 10 days, 7 days, 5 days, 3 days, 2 days, 1 day or 12 hours. In a preferred embodiment, if there are living cells in the product, the product should be stored at low temperature (e.g., less than 20°C, 15°C, 10°C or 5°C). On the other hand, biosurfactants are usually stored at ambient temperature.

Claims

1. A dehydration method, comprising: a) contacting a dehydrated composition comprising a biosurfactant with a liquid containing solid or semisolid particles; as well as b) Removing water from solid or semi-solid particles in a liquid to produce dehydrated particles.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein removing water comprises filtration, centrifugation, sedimentation, or any combination thereof.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the filtering comprises using a plate and frame filter press or a belt filter press. The method of claim 1 , wherein filtering comprises applying a vacuum to the filter. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the liquid is wastewater or ore slurry.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the wastewater is municipal wastewater, rainwater, mining wastewater, quarrying wastewater, groundwater, precipitation or industrial wastewater.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the wastewater or ore slurry is from a coal mine, an iron ore, a copper ore, a copper-nickel ore, a tin ore, a nickel ore, a gold ore, a silver ore, a molybdenum ore, an aluminum ore, a lead-zinc ore, a tungsten ore, a phosphate ore, a potash ore, a mica ore, a bentonite ore or a zinc ore.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the aluminum ore is kyanite ore or bauxite.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the dehydration composition further comprises a chemical surfactant, a polymer, a flocculant, a clarifier, a coagulant, a filter aid, a defoaming agent, an inorganic salt, or any combination thereof.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the dehydrating composition is in liquid form, and wherein the contacting step comprises mixing the composition with the liquid for a period of time from about 1 second to about 1 year.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the biosurfactant is a sophorolipid and / or a yeast culture comprising a sophorolipid.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the yeast culture is Stamosaccharomyces and / or Candida yeast.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the yeast is in a vegetative state.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the yeast is in spore form.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the dehydration comprises removing water from the solid or semisolid particles by one or a combination of the following: a) attaching particles to surfaces and / or objects; b) agglomerating particles together; c) allowing the particles to settle; d) reduce the surface tension of the liquid; or e) Reduce the interfacial tension between liquid and solid or semi-solid particles.

16. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: c) Measuring the moisture content of the dehydrated particles.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the dehydrated particles have a moisture content lower than dehydrated particles that have not been contacted with the biosurfactant.

18. A dehydration composition comprising a sophorolipid and / or a yeast culture comprising a sophorolipid and one or more conventional dehydration ingredients.

19. The composition according to claim 18, wherein the yeast culture is Stamosaccharomyces and / or Candida yeast.

20. The composition of claim 18, wherein the yeast is in a vegetative state.

21. The composition of claim 18, wherein the yeast is in spore form.

22. The composition according to claim 18, wherein the traditional dehydrating ingredients are selected from one or a combination of the following ingredients: a) chemical surfactants; b) polymers; c) flocculants; d) filter aids; e) defoaming agent; f) clarifier; g) a coagulant; or h) an inorganic salt.

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