Method for producing carboxylic acid composition

Abstract

To provide a method for producing a carboxylic acid composition such that even a carboxylic acid containing by-products can be used as it is without undergoing purification processes, thereby reducing environmental impacts and manufacturing costs.SOLUTION: The composition is produced by fermenting, at room temperature, a bacterial solution prepared by adding Bacillus, lactic acid bacteria and yeast to sugar, seawater salt, whey and sake. The bacterial solution is divided into three portions, and the portions of the bacterial solution are fermented for respective different periods to produce three types of fermented bacterial solutions. Thereafter, the three types of fermented bacterial solutions are mixed.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for producing a carboxylic acid composition, specifically, a method for producing a carboxylic acid composition containing a predetermined amount of an amino acid. [Background technology]

[0002] Carboxylic acids are important compounds for a variety of chemical products. For example, carboxylic acids such as acetoacetic acid are used as herbicides and insecticides, and may also be used to promote plant growth. In addition, carboxylic acids are sometimes used as ligands to form metal complexes, which can be used to remove impurity metals.

[0003] Various techniques have been proposed as methods for producing carboxylic acids. For example, the techniques described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 have been disclosed as methods for producing carboxylic acids using biotechnology, similar to the present invention. The technique described in Patent Document 1 obtains carboxylic acids by hydrolysis of a biomass product in the presence of an acid catalyst (either Lewis acid or Bronsted-Lowry acid is acceptable). The technique described in Patent Document 2 discloses a method for producing carboxylic acids from hydrocarbons using microorganisms. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Special Publication No. 2016-512826 [Patent Document 2] Special Publication No. 2009-521918 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] When carboxylic acids are obtained by hydrolysis of biomass products in the presence of an acid catalyst, as in the technology described in Patent Document 1, the selectivity of the reaction product is low, and by-products such as aldehydes and ketones are generated. In addition, acid catalysts are highly corrosive and can damage equipment such as reactors and pipes, so these equipment must be treated to make them acid-resistant. In addition, when acid catalysts are used, the equipment has a short life span, resulting in increased maintenance costs. Moreover, the hydrolysis reaction using an acid catalyst is carried out under high temperature and pressure, which consumes a lot of energy. In addition, the acid catalyst is a strong acid, and as mentioned above, by-products are generated, which places a heavy burden on the environment.

[0006] When producing carboxylic acids from hydrocarbons using microorganisms, as in the technology described in Patent Document 2, the maintenance and growth of appropriate strains is a major premise. On the other hand, it is also known that the production yield may be low relative to the amount of production, and a large amount of energy may be required to purify the product, which can lead to high costs.

[0007] Therefore, the inventors have found that these problems can be solved if a new carboxylic acid can be produced with a focus on reducing the environmental load, and if even a carboxylic acid containing a by-product can be used as it is without being subjected to a purification step, and have completed the present invention. An object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing a carboxylic acid composition, which can utilize a carboxylic acid containing by-products as it is without undergoing a purification step, thereby reducing the environmental load and production costs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The invention described in claim 1 is a method for producing a carboxylic acid composition by fermenting a bacterial solution of sugar, sea salt, whey, and sake to which Bacillus spp., lactic acid bacteria, and yeast bacteria have been added at room temperature, the bacterial solution being divided into three equal parts and each bacterial solution being fermented for a different period of time to produce three types of fermented bacterial solutions, and the three types of fermented bacterial solutions are mixed to produce the carboxylic acid composition.

[0009] Sugars include glucose, sucrose, arabinose, xylose, lactose, fructose, maltose, molasses, starch, cellulose and hemicellulose, as well as glycerol or any other very simple organic molecular skeleton containing a single formyl or carbonyl group. Sea salt is obtained by collecting seawater and removing water molecules. It does not matter where it is collected, and it may be industrially produced artificial seawater. Whey is an aqueous solution obtained by removing milk fat, casein, etc. from milk such as cow's milk. There is no particular restriction on the type of milk, but cow's milk is preferred from the viewpoint of distribution volume. Sake is a type of sake made primarily from rice, koji, and water, and is classified as brewed alcohol. There are no particular restrictions on the brand. The genus Bacillus is a genus that contains a great number of species and is ubiquitous in water and soil. Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus subtilis natto are selected from these genus, and those that have no effect on the human body, such as Bacillus anthracis, should be excluded. Lactic acid bacteria are bacteria that produce lactic acid through metabolism. In the present invention, lactic acid bacteria may be homolactic acid bacteria that produce only lactic acid as the final product, or heterolactic acid bacteria that simultaneously produce vitamins, alcohol, and other substances in addition to lactic acid. Yeasts are fungi whose vegetative bodies are unicellular for a certain period of their life cycle, and examples of yeasts that can be used include budding yeast, fission yeast, Candida, killer yeast, and torula yeast.

[0010] The bacterial solution contains sugar, sea salt, whey, sake, Bacillus spp., lactic acid bacteria, and yeast, and the carboxylic acid composition can be produced by fermenting this bacterial solution at room temperature. In this case, one bacterial solution is divided into three equal parts, and the fermentation period of each of the three equal parts is set to a different value. For example, one of the three bacterial solutions is fermented for 15 days, another is fermented for 30 days, and the remaining bacterial solution is fermented for 45 days. The fermentation period is a factor that should be varied depending on the type and mixing ratio of the components that make up the bacterial solution, but is generally allocated within the range of 10 to 180 days. These bacterial solutions can then be mixed to obtain the carboxylic acid composition.

[0011] The carboxylic acid composition thus obtained contains not only carboxylic acids but also various mineral components, and can therefore be used as a plant growth promoter without considering by-products, i.e., without undergoing a purification step. In addition, although the theory regarding the detailed chemical properties is unclear, in the case of the carboxylic acid composition obtained by the present invention, since a metal complex can be easily constituted, it is possible to recover impurity metals, and since the unpaired electron pair of the carboxylic acid is stabilized, it is possible to promote a nucleophilic addition reaction, and it is possible to recover even fluorine and tritium, which are considered to be difficult to recover.

[0012] The invention described in claim 2 is the method for producing a carboxylic acid composition described in claim 1, in which air nano bubbles are blown into the bacterial solution for 10 minutes before fermentation.

[0013] According to the invention described in claim 2, by blowing air nanobubbles into a bacterial solution before fermentation for 10 minutes, the activity of the bacteria Bacillus, lactic acid bacteria, and yeast is increased, and not only can the yield of the carboxylic acid composition be increased, but the active ingredients are also concentrated, making it extremely effective when used as a plant growth promoter or recovery agent.

[0014] The invention described in claim 3 is a method for producing a carboxylic acid composition by supplying ozone nanobubbles to a solution obtained by the method for producing a carboxylic acid composition described in claim 1 or claim 2, formic acid, and lithium diisopropylamide, adding titanium oxide to the solution, supplying ozone nanobubbles again, adding diatomaceous shale nanopowder to the solution, supplying ozone nanobubbles again, and filtering the solution.

[0015] According to the invention of claim 3, formic acid, lithium diisopropylamide (hereinafter simply abbreviated as LDA), titanium oxide, etc. are further added to the carboxylic acid composition of claim 1 or claim 2 (i.e., the carboxylic acid composition of the present invention), and ozone nanobubbles are blown in every time the composition is added externally. In this case, due to the reducing properties of formic acid and LDA, the formation of metal complexes, etc. with the carboxylic acid, etc. becomes more effective. For this reason, for example, impurities such as impurity metals, fluorine, and tritium contained in the contaminated object can be recovered in high yield by forming metal complexes, etc. with the carboxylic acid composition and then passing through a stage of purifying the contaminated object. Effect of the Invention

[0016] The carboxylic acid composition according to the present invention contains not only carboxylic acids but also various mineral components, and therefore can be used as a plant growth promoter without considering by-products, i.e., without undergoing a purification process. Furthermore, although the theory regarding the detailed chemical properties is unclear, the carboxylic acid composition obtained according to the present invention makes it possible to recover impurity metals, fluorine and tritium.

[0017] In particular, according to the invention described in claim 2, the activity of the bacteria Bacillus genus, lactic acid bacteria, and yeast is increased, and not only can the yield of the carboxylic acid composition be increased, but the active ingredients are concentrated, making it extremely effective when used as a plant growth promoter or recovery agent.

[0018] In addition, according to the invention described in claim 3, due to the reducing properties of formic acid and LDA, the formation of metal complexes with carboxylic acids and the like becomes more effective, and impurities such as impurity metals, fluorine, and tritium can be recovered in high yields. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] In the method for producing a carboxylic acid composition according to the embodiment of the present invention, 500 g of commercially available brown sugar as raw sugar, 5 g of commercially available salt containing bittern, 500 g of Yakult whey, and 200 ml of commercially available sake (seishu) were placed in a container, and ozone nanobubbles were supplied for 2 hours, followed by air nanobubble treatment for 2 hours. After that, bacteria were added and stirred, then the mixture was divided into three equal parts and fermented while stirring in a water temperature range of 25 to 28 degrees. The fermentation period of one of the three bacterial solutions was 15 days, one of the other solutions was 45 days, and the remaining solution was 90 days. Then, once every five days, 50g of raw sugar, 0.5g of sea salt, 50g of whey, and 100ml of sake were dissolved in water to make 10L of solution, which was then added to each bacterial solution. After fermentation, the three equal portions of the bacterial solution were placed in one container, mixed, and finally 3 ml of a 70% formic acid solution was added to obtain a carboxylic acid composition. The composition contains a large amount of amino acids and carboxylic acids in addition to minerals.

[0020] The bacteria (species) used in this example were Bacillus genus, lactic acid bacteria, and yeast. The Bacillus genus was collected from straw. The lactic acid bacteria used were from Yakult, and the yeast was from a commercial yeast. In addition, crushed shiitake mushrooms were used as natural resident bacteria. These were added in small amounts at the fermentation stage of the carboxylic acid composition according to the example of the present invention.

[0021] (Use as a plant growth agent) The experiment was conducted in 2020 in a 1 tan rice paddy field in Kyonan Town, Chiba Prefecture. The paddy field was divided into an area where rice was cultivated without using the carboxylic acid composition according to this embodiment and an area where rice was cultivated by spraying the carboxylic acid composition according to this embodiment, and rice was cultivated under the same other rice cultivation conditions. The amount of the carboxylic acid composition sprayed was 50 L / 50 a. As a result, the ratio of the rice harvest in the area where rice was cultivated by spraying the carboxylic acid composition according to this embodiment to the rice harvest in the area where rice was cultivated without using the carboxylic acid composition was 1.2, and it was confirmed that the carboxylic acid composition according to this embodiment can be used as a plant growth agent. In the following year (2021), rice was grown at the same location without using the carboxylic acid composition of the present embodiment. As a result, the ratio of the rice harvest in the area where rice was grown in 2020 after spraying the carboxylic acid composition of the present embodiment to the rice harvest in the area where rice was grown in 2020 without using the carboxylic acid composition was 1.1, and the effect of the composition as a plant growth agent was confirmed even in continuous cropping.

[0022] (Use as an impurity metal recovery agent) Sodium fluoride and tritium were added as impurities to 1000 ml of pure water, and the mixture was thoroughly stirred. Then, 100 ml of the carboxylic acid composition according to this embodiment was added and stirred, and the mixture was left for 24 hours. After that, the carboxylic acid composition was removed by a purification process, and then an analysis was performed by instrumental analysis. As a result, it was confirmed that more than 60% of both sodium fluoride and tritium were removed.

Claims

1. A method for producing a carboxylic acid composition, comprising fermenting a bacterial solution containing sugar, sea salt, whey, and sake, Bacillus spp., lactic acid bacteria, and yeast at room temperature, the method comprising the steps of: The bacterial solution is divided into three equal parts, and the fermentation period of each bacterial solution is varied to produce three types of fermented bacterial solutions; A method for producing a carboxylic acid composition by mixing the three types of fermented bacterial solutions.

2. The method for producing a carboxylic acid composition according to claim 1, wherein air nanobubbles are blown into the bacterial solution for 10 minutes before the fermentation of the bacterial solution.

3. A method for producing a carboxylic acid composition comprising: supplying ozone nanobubbles to a solution obtained by the method for producing a carboxylic acid composition according to claim 1 or 2, formic acid, and lithium diisopropylamide; Then, titanium oxide is added to the solution, and then ozone nanobubbles are supplied again. Then, diatomaceous shale nanopowder is added to the solution, and then ozone nanobubbles are supplied again; Thereafter, the solution is filtered to produce a carboxylic acid composition.