Systems and methods for extraction of halogenated compounds and / or phycoerythrins

Abstract

The present disclosure describes systems and methods for extracting one or more compounds from aquatic plants, such as, seaweed, although other plants or plant types are possible. As described in more detail below, seaweed and certain other plants may contain useful compounds and materials, such as bromoform (or some other halogenated compound) and / or phycoerythrin (PE). The useful compounds may be extracted into a particular phase (e.g., an aqueous phase, an organic phase) and, in some cases, further purified. In some cases, a majority or an entirety of the seaweed can be used. That is, in some embodiments, useful compounds are extracted from the seaweed and the remaining seaweed itself (i.e., the seaweed remaining after the useful compounds have been extracted) may also be useful in that it may contain useful nutrients (e.g., protein) that can be used as a feedstock (e.g., an animal feedstock) and / or may be used as an additive to existing feedstock.

Description

[0001] SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR EXTRACTION OF HALOGENATED COMPOUNDS AND / OR PHYCOERYTHRINS

[0002] RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0003] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 63 / 677,959, filed July 31, 2024, entitled “Systems and Methods for Extraction of Halogenated Compounds and / or Phycoerythrins,” incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0004] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0005] The present disclosure generally describes systems and methods for extracting certain compounds from some plants, such as seaweed.

[0006] BACKGROUND

[0007] Biorefineries continue to grow in abundance due to their sustainability of efficient biomass conversion to multiple products. Reducing energy use while increasing products derived from the biomass decreases stress put on the environment and increases the profitability of production operations. For example, phycoerythrin (PE) is a protein that contributes to the pigment of red algae, including Asparagopsis taxiformis. PE can be extracted from the algae using various methods such as thermal shock, osmotic shock, and sonication. However, such methods often use frozen biomass, which is not generally scalable because of the energy and the storage space required. Accordingly, improved systems and methods for increasing the amounts of products recovered from biorefineries and / or reducing their energy costs are needed.

[0008] SUMMARY

[0009] The following disclosure describes systems and methods for extracting compounds, such as halogenated compounds and / or phycoerythrin. The subject matter of the present disclosure involves, in some cases, interrelated products, alternative solutions to a particular problem, and / or a plurality of different uses of one or more systems and / or articles.

[0010] One aspect is generally drawn to a method for extracting phycoerythrin from seaweed. In one set of embodiments, the method comprises extracting bromoform from seaweed using a plant oil; disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase, wherein the aqueous phase comprises water and phycoerythrin from the seaweed; and separating the seaweed, the plant oil comprising the bromoform, and the aqueous phase comprising the phycoerythrin.

[0011] Another aspect is generally drawn to a method comprising immersing seaweed in an oil; disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase comprising water from the seaweed; and separating the seaweed, the oil, and the aqueous phase.

[0012] The method, in yet another aspect, comprises extracting bromoform from seaweed using a plant oil; disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase, wherein the aqueous phase comprises water and phycoerythrin from the seaweed; separating the seaweed, the plant oil comprising the bromoform, and the aqueous phase comprising the phycoerythrin; producing biomass using the seaweed; purifying the phycoerythrin from the aqueous phase; and separating the bromoform from the plant oil.

[0013] According to still another aspect, the method comprises exposing seaweed to an oil; separating the seaweed and the oil; disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase comprising water from the seaweed; and separating the seaweed and the aqueous phase.

[0014] Other advantages and novel features of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description of various non-limiting embodiments of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying figures. In cases where the present specification and a document incorporated by reference include conflicting and / or inconsistent disclosure, the present specification shall control.

[0015] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Non-limiting embodiments of the present invention will be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying figures, which are schematic and are not intended to be drawn to scale. In the figures, each identical or nearly identical component illustrated is typically represented by a single numeral. For purposes of clarity, not every component is labeled in every figure, nor is every component of each embodiment of the invention shown where illustration is not necessary to allow those of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention. In the figures:

[0017] FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram of combining seaweed and an oil, according to some embodiments;

[0018] FIG. IB is schematic diagram showing the disruption of seaweed within oil, according to some embodiments; FIGS. 1C-1D show the partitioning of disrupted seaweed into at least two phases, including an aqueous phase and an organic phase, according to some embodiments; and

[0019] FIG. 2 shows a spectrum of crude R-phycoerythrin extracted in accordance with another embodiment.

[0020] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The present disclosure describes systems and methods for extracting one or more compounds from aquatic plants, such as, seaweed, although other plants or plant types are possible. As described in more detail below, seaweed and certain other plants may contain useful compounds and materials, such as bromoform (or some other halogenated compound) and / or phycoerythrin (PE). The useful compounds may be extracted into a particular phase (e.g., an aqueous phase, an organic phase) and, in some cases, further purified. In some cases, a majority or an entirety of the seaweed can be used. That is, in some embodiments, useful compounds are extracted from the seaweed and the remaining seaweed itself (i.e., the seaweed remaining after the useful compounds have been extracted) may also be useful in that it may contain useful nutrients (e.g., protein) that can be used as a feedstock (e.g., an animal feedstock) and / or may be used as an additive to existing feedstock.

[0022] For various embodiments described here, useful compounds (e.g., halogenated compounds, bromoform, PE) are extracted from seaweed. For example, in some embodiments, halogenated compounds and / or PE are extracted from Asparagopsis taxiformis and / or armata. Other species from Asparagopsis may be used in other embodiments. Other examples of seaweed include, but are not limited to, seaweed in the following families: Acinetosporaceae, Agaraceae, Ahnfelitaceae, Alariaceae, Arthrospira, Bacillariophyceae, Bangiaceae, Bomiemaisoniaceae, Caulerpacaea, Chlorella, Chlorophyceae, Chordariaceae, Cladophoraceae, Codiaceae, Compsopogonales, Cyanidioschyzonaceae, Cyanidiaceae, Cylindrospermum, Delesseriaceae, Desmarestiaceae, Dictyotaceae, Dinophyceae, Dumontiaceae, Erythropeltales, Euglenophyceae, Fucaceae, Furcellariaceae, Gelidiellacaeae, Gigartinaceae, Gracilariaceae, Halimedacaea, Haylmedacaea, Laminariaceae, Naccariaceae, Namiochloropsis, Noelaerhabdaceae, Palmariaceae, Phaeophyceae, Phyllophoraceae, Phragmonemataceae, Porphyridiaceae, Pterocladiaceae, Rhodomelaceae, Rhodochaetales, Rhizophyllidacaeae, Rhodomelaceae, Rufusiaceae, Sargassacaea, Sphacelariaeceae, Stylonemataceae, or Ulvaceae. In addition, in some cases, more than one type of seaweed may be present.

[0023] As mentioned above, useful compounds may be extracted from seaweed. In some embodiments, the useful compounds comprise a halogenated compound and / or PE. Other compounds are, of course, possible. Useful compounds may include biostimulants and / or feed additives (e.g., feed for cattle, poultry, fish, etc.).

[0024] Details on how useful compounds are extracted are described elsewhere herein, but briefly, in some embodiments, the seaweed is subjected to an oil (e.g., a plant oil) and mixed with the oil. In some such embodiments, mixing of the oil and seaweed disrupts (or helps disrupt) cell walls of the seaweed so that contents of the seaweed are mixed with the oil. However, in other embodiments, other techniques may be used to disrupt (or help disrupt) the cell walls of the seaweed (e.g., sonication, centrifugation, etc.). After disrupting the seaweed, at least some of the water within the seaweed is released, producing an aqueous phase, while the oil forms an organic phase. More polar compounds within seaweed may partition into the aqueous phase, while less polar compounds within the seaweed may partition into the organic phase. For example, in one set of embodiments, PE may preferentially partition into the aqueous phase, and / or one or more halogenated compounds (e.g., bromoform) may preferentially partition into the organic phase.

[0025] It should be understood that the partitioning of a compound into a phase, e.g., as discussed herein, may not necessarily reach 100% or “perfect” separation. For instance, a compound (e.g., a halogenated compound, PE, etc.) partitioning into one phase as discussed herein may, in various embodiments, result in at least 55%, at least 60%, at least 65%, at least 70%, at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, or at least 95% (by weight) of the compound appearing in that phase, with the remainer of the compound being present in other phases.

[0026] In some embodiments, one or more useful compounds (e.g., protein) may remain in the seaweed, rather than partitioning into either the organic phase (e.g., oil) or the aqueous phase (e.g., water). The remaining seaweed (e.g., seaweed depleted of at least one or more of the useful compounds) may be a solid and form a separate phase from any of the other phases (e.g., from the organic phase, from the aqueous phase). The remaining seaweed (i.e., remaining biomass) may also serve useful functions, such as acting a feedstock, feed additive, or a biostimulant, etc. In one embodiment, for example, from seaweed is extracted a halogenated compound (e.g., bromoform) and PE, while the remaining seaweed remains (e.g., as a solid phase). The remaining seaweed may be used for a variety of different purposes. For example, in one embodiment, the seaweed may be used as a feedstock, for example, for cattle. Advantageously, feedstock processed in this manner may result in certain embodiments in less greenhouse gas emission (e.g., methane) when fed to cattle (or some other livestock) relative to conventional feedstocks, such as grass or hay. As another example, the seaweed may be used as a biostimulant. Of course, other useful products are possible in other embodiments.

[0027] In addition, in some cases, the oil after extraction may be used for a variety of purposes. For example, the oil can be used as a feedstock or an additive to reduce methane in certain cases, e.g., when fed to cattle, poultry, livestock, or other animals. In some cases, certain compounds of interest that can reduce methane can be extracted from the oil.

[0028] A variety of oils may be used to extract compounds from the seaweed. For example, in some embodiments, the oil is a plant oil or a plant-derived oil. Non-limiting examples of plant oils include almond oil, apricot oil, argan oil, avocado oil, brazil nut oil, canola oil, cashew oil, coconut oil, colza oil, corn oil, copra oil, cottonseed oil, diacylglycerol oil, flaxseed oil, grapefruit seed oil, grapeseed oil, hazelnut oil, hemp oil, lemon oil, linseed oil, macadamia oil, mustard oil, olive oil, orange oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, peanut oil, pecan oil, pine nut oil, pistachio oil, pumpkin seed oil, rapeseed oil, rice bran oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, walnut oil, and / or vegetable oil. Of course, other oils, or other relatively non-polar liquids, are possible. In addition, in still other embodiments, more than one such oil may be used, and / or the oils may be used with other compounds, etc.

[0029] As mentioned above, in some embodiments, a halogenated compound is extracted from the seaweed. The halogenated compound may preferentially partition into an organic phase (e.g., oil) when extracting from the seaweed. In some embodiments, the halogenated compound is or comprises bromoform. However, other halogenated compounds are possible.

[0030] In some embodiments, a phycoerythrin (or PE) is extracted from the seaweed. Phycoerythrins are typically relatively polar compared to halogenated compounds and may selectively partition into an aqueous phase over an organic phase. Phycoerthrins find use in a variety of applications, such as textiles, cosmetics, or pharmaceutical research. One non-limiting example of one phycoerythrin that can be extracted is R- phycoerythrin (R-PE). Other extracted compounds may also partition into the aqueous layer. Relative affinity for one phase over another phase can be measured, for example, by determining a partition coefficient of the species comparing the two phases.

[0031] Once one or more useful compounds (e.g., bromoform, PE, or other compounds such as those described herein) have been extracted from the seaweed, the remaining, depleted seaweed may, itself, also provide a variety of uses in accordance with some embodiments. For example, in some embodiments, the depleted seaweed (e.g., depleted of one or more useful compounds) may be used as a feedstock, as a biostimulant, or the like. In some embodiments, the depleted seaweed is an additive to feed (e.g., feed to cattle, feed to poultry, feed to livestock, etc.), and / or other uses (for example, as a source of plant fiber).

[0032] Turning to the figures, an exemplary (non-limiting) method for extracting useful compounds from seaweed is described and schematically illustrated. For example, in FIG. 1 A, seaweed 110 is combined in container 120 with oil 122 and mixed. Any of a variety of mixing techniques may be used. As mentioned above, mixing of the seaweed may facilitate disruption of the seaweed so that compounds may leave the seaweed and enter the seaweed-oil mixture. For example, as shown schematically in FIG. IB, disrupted seaweed 130 is shown in the container 120. Some of the seaweed may also be present in certain cases, e.g., as a solid phase.

[0033] After disrupting the seaweed, the mixture may comprise at least two distinct phases, such as an oil phase and a water phase. For example, in FIG. 1C, the seaweed-oil mixture phase segregates into a bottom aqueous layer 140 and a top organic layer 142, where the aqueous layer 140 comprises water (e.g., from the seaweed) and the organic layer 142 comprises oil (e.g., a plant oil).

[0034] In some embodiments, more than two distinct phases may be present. For example, as shown in FIG. ID, the container 120 includes the aqueous layer 140 and the organic layer 142 described in the context of FIG. 1C but also includes an additional phase 144 at the bottom of the aqueous layer 140. The additional phase may be solid phase (e.g., solid seaweed remaining after extracting useful compounds) but may also be another fluid phase (e.g., a fluorocarbon phase).

[0035] Additional details regarding the methods and systems described here are provided below. As mentioned above and elsewhere herein, the seaweed is disrupted in accordance with some embodiments. The seaweed may in some cases be mixed with an oil (e.g., a plant oil), wherein mixing facilitates disruption of the seaweed (e.g., cell walls of cells of the seaweed). However, other techniques may also be used, additionally or alternatively to mixing. For example, in some embodiments, a detergent can be used to lyse cells of the seaweed, e.g., in order to facilitate disruption of the seaweed. In some embodiments, sonication is used to affect disruption of the seaweed. In some embodiments, centrifugation facilitate disruption of cell walls within the seaweed. In some embodiments, one or more enzymes is added to the oil and / or the seaweed to facilitate disruption of the seaweed. In some embodiments, a combination of different techniques is used (e.g., sonication and centrifugation; a detergent and centrifugation). For some embodiments, freezing and / or thawing may disrupt cell walls within the seaweed. In some embodiments, the seaweed is pressed (e.g., using a hydraulic press) to disrupt the seaweed.

[0036] In some embodiments, disrupting the seaweed causes water within the seaweed to be expelled. In some embodiments, disrupting the seaweed expels at least 30 wt%, at least 40 wt%, at least 50 wt%, at least 60 wt%, or at least 70 wt% of water from the seaweed. In some embodiments, disrupting the seaweed expels less than or equal to 70 wt%, less than or equal to 60 wt%, less than or equal to 50 wt%, less than or equal to 40 wt%, less than or equal to 30 wt% of water from the seaweed. Combinations of the foregoing range are also possible (e.g., greater than or equal to 30 wt% and less than or equal to 70 wt%). Other ranges are possible.

[0037] In some embodiments, heating and / or cooling is applied to facilitate disruption of the seaweed. For example, in some embodiments, a method comprises heating or cooling the seaweed and / or the oil to a temperature of greater than or equal to -78 °C and less than or equal to 40 °C. For example, in certain cases, freezing the biomass may be helpful as it is relatively energy efficient. However, in some embodiments, heat may be useful for extracting bromoform, phycoerythrin, or other compounds. For example, phycoerythrin may be stable under certain conditions at temperatures up to 60 °C, up to 80 °C, up to 100 °C, up to 120 °C, or up to 140 °C.

[0038] In some embodiments, the seaweed and / or the oil is heated (or cooled) to a temperature of greater than or equal to -78 °C, greater than or equal to -70 °C, greater than or equal to -60 °C, greater than or equal to -50 °C, greater than or equal to -40 °C, greater than or equal to -30 °C, greater than or equal to -20 °C, greater than or equal to - 10 °C, greater than or equal to 0 °C, greater than or equal to 5 °C, greater than or equal to 10 °C, greater than or equal to 20 °C, greater than or equal to 25 °C, greater than or equal to 30 °C, greater than or equal to 40 °C, greater than or equal to 50 °C, greater than or equal to 60 °C, greater than or equal to 70 °C, greater than or equal to 80 °C, greater than or equal to 90 °C, greater than or equal to 100 °C, greater than or equal to 120 °C, greater than or equal to 130 °C, greater than or equal to 140 °C, greater than or equal to 150 °C, greater than or equal to 160 °C, etc. In some embodiments, the seaweed and / or the oil is heated (or cooled) to a temperature of less than or equal to 140 °C, less than or equal to 130 °C, less than or equal to 120 °C, less than or equal to 110 °C, less than or equal to 100 °C, less than or equal to 90 °C, less than or equal to 80 °C, less than or equal to 70 °C, less than or equal to 60 °C, less than or equal to 50 °C, less than or equal to 40 °C, less than or equal to 30 °C, less than or equal to 25 °C, less than or equal to 20 °C, less than or equal to 10 °C, less than or equal to 0 °C, less than or equal to -10 °C, less than or equal to -20 °C, less than or equal to -30 °C, less than or equal to -40 °C, less than or equal to -50 °C, less than or equal to -60 °C, less than or equal to -70 °C, or less than or equal to -78 °C. Combinations of the foregoing ranges are also possible (e.g., greater than or equal to -78 °C and less than or equal to 40 °C). As non-limiting examples, the temperature of the oil may be heated to any temperature falling within these regions, e.g., between 120 °C and 180 °C, between 140 °C and 180 °C, etc. Other ranges are possible as this disclosure is not so limited.

[0039] Extracting of compounds (e.g., bromoform, PE) may occur over a particular period of time. For example, in some embodiments, extracting occurs over a duration of greater than or equal to 1 minute and less than or equal to 1 month. In some embodiments, extraction occurs over a duration of greater than or equal to 1 minute, greater than or equal to 10 minutes, greater than or equal to 30 minutes, greater than or equal to 1 hour, greater than or equal to 6 hours, greater than or equal to 12 hours, greater than or equal to 1 day, greater than or equal to 5 days, greater than or equal to 7 days, greater than or equal to 14 days, or greater than or equal to 1 month. In some embodiments, extraction occurs over a duration of less than or equal to 1 month, less than or equal to 14 days, less than or equal to 7 days, less than or equal to 5 days, less than or equal to 1 day, less than or equal 12 hours, less than or equal to 6 hours, less than or equal to 1 hour, less than or equal to 30 minutes, less than or equal to 10 minutes, or less than or equal to 1 minute. Combinations of the foregoing ranges are also possible (e.g., greater than or equal to 1 minute and less than or equal to 1 month). Of course, other ranges are possible as this disclosure is not so limiting.

[0040] In some embodiments, after disrupting the seaweed, the various phases may segregate and separate. As a non-limiting example, this is illustrated, above, in connection with FIG. 1. In some embodiments, differences in polarity and / or density result in separation of the various phases (e.g., an aqueous phase separates from an organic phase). In some embodiments, at least one phase (e.g., an additional phase relative to an organic phase and an aqueous phase) is a solid phase, and may separate from the other phases (e.g., an aqueous phase, an organic phase) by gravity.

[0041] After phase(s) segregated, one or more phases may contain a useful compound with a particular purity level, e.g., as discussed herein. For example, in the case where the useful compound is PE, which is photoactive, UV-Vis spectroscopy can be used to determine a relative purity (e.g., by comparing absorbances are two or more different wavelengths).

[0042] The systems and methods described by this disclosure have a variety of applications. For example, as mentioned many times above, useful compounds can be extracted from seaweed, and other plants, such as halogenated compounds (e.g., bromoform) and / or PE. After extraction, PE may be further purified into medical grade, reagent grade, and / or food grade PE and can be used, for example, as a natural alternative to clothing dye. PE may also find uses in biological or medial imaging, due in part to its fluorescent pink color. The remaining solid biomass may also find uses as a feedstock. The system and methods may be used within a biorefinery where an input (e.g., seaweed) is processed into one or more streams (e.g., halogenated compounds, PE, depleted seaweed) and each stream may be further processed (e.g., further purified, isolated, formulated).

[0043] U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 63 / 677,959, filed July 31, 2024, entitled “Systems and Methods for Extraction of Halogenated Compounds and / or Phycoerythrins,” is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0044] The following examples are intended to illustrate certain embodiments of the present invention, but do not exemplify the full scope of the invention. EXAMPLE 1

[0045] This example illustrates seaweed that is cultivated with a goal to reduce enteric methane emissions from ruminants, in accordance with one embodiment. In this example, an oil immersion is utilized to extract the main anti-methanogenic metabolite, bromoform. Oil immersion is used to reduce the energy cost and improve bromoform retention by potentially eliminating several processing steps, such as freezing.

[0046] An oil extraction of bromoform produces two biproducts: (1) an vibrant pink aqueous layer containing PE, as seen in Figure 2, and (2) a raffinate, i.e., left over biomass. To reduce waste and provide more value, all three fractions (aqueous solution, oil phase, and raffinate) can be utilized, e.g., for different applications. Optionally, these extractions can be done with fresh (non-frozen) biomass.

[0047] Fig. 2 illustrates a full spectrum of crude R-PE extracted from oil infusion, produced as discussed above. In this example, A565 / A260 is approximately 0.2. The peak at 565 nm, along with a distinct fluorescent pink color that was visually observed, confirmed the presence of PE in the oil phase.

[0048] While several embodiments of the present disclosure have been described and illustrated herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily envision a variety of other means and / or structures for performing the functions and / or obtaining the results and / or one or more of the advantages described herein, and each of such variations and / or modifications is deemed to be within the scope of the present disclosure. More generally, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that all parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations described herein are meant to be exemplary and that the actual parameters, dimensions, materials, and / or configurations will depend upon the specific application or applications for which the teachings of the present disclosure is / are used. Those skilled in the art will recognize or be able to ascertain using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specific embodiments of the invention described herein. It is, therefore, to be understood that the foregoing embodiments are presented by way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents thereto, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described and claimed. The present disclosure is directed to each individual feature, system, article, material, and / or method described herein. In addition, any combination of two or more such features, systems, articles, materials, and / or methods, if such features, systems, articles, materials, and / or methods are not mutually inconsistent, is included within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0049] The indefinite articles “a” and “an,” as used herein in the specification and in the claims, unless clearly indicated to the contrary, should be understood to mean “at least one.”

[0050] The phrase “and / or,” as used herein in the specification and in the claims, should be understood to mean “either or both” of the elements so conjoined, i.e., elements that are conjunctively present in some cases and disjunctively present in other cases. Other elements may optionally be present other than the elements specifically identified by the “and / or” clause, whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified unless clearly indicated to the contrary. Thus, as a non-limiting example, a reference to “A and / or B,” when used in conjunction with open-ended language such as “comprising” can refer, in one embodiment, to A without B (optionally including elements other than B); in another embodiment, to B without A (optionally including elements other than A); in yet another embodiment, to both A and B (optionally including other elements); etc.

[0051] As used herein in the specification and in the claims, “or” should be understood to have the same meaning as “and / or” as defined above. For example, when separating items in a list, “or” or “and / or” shall be interpreted as being inclusive, i.e., the inclusion of at least one, but also including more than one, of a number or list of elements, and, optionally, additional unlisted items. Only terms clearly indicated to the contrary, such as “only one of’ or “exactly one of,” or, when used in the claims, “consisting of,” will refer to the inclusion of exactly one element of a number or list of elements. In general, the term “or” as used herein shall only be interpreted as indicating exclusive alternatives (i.e. “one or the other but not both”) when preceded by terms of exclusivity, such as “either,” “one of,” “only one of,” or “exactly one of.” “Consisting essentially of,” when used in the claims, shall have its ordinary meaning as used in the field of patent law.

[0052] As used herein in the specification and in the claims, the phrase “at least one,” in reference to a list of one or more elements, should be understood to mean at least one element selected from any one or more of the elements in the list of elements, but not necessarily including at least one of each and every element specifically listed within the list of elements and not excluding any combinations of elements in the list of elements. This definition also allows that elements may optionally be present other than the elements specifically identified within the list of elements to which the phrase “at least one” refers, whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified. Thus, as a non-limiting example, “at least one of A and B” (or, equivalently, “at least one of A or B,” or, equivalently “at least one of A and / or B”) can refer, in one embodiment, to at least one, optionally including more than one, A, with no B present (and optionally including elements other than B); in another embodiment, to at least one, optionally including more than one, B, with no A present (and optionally including elements other than A); in yet another embodiment, to at least one, optionally including more than one, A, and at least one, optionally including more than one, B (and optionally including other elements); etc.

[0053] Some embodiments may be embodied as a method, of which various examples have been described. The acts performed as part of the methods may be ordered in any suitable way. Accordingly, embodiments may be constructed in which acts are performed in an order different than illustrated, which may include different (e.g., more or less) acts than those that are described, and / or that may involve performing some acts simultaneously, even though the acts are shown as being performed sequentially in the embodiments specifically described above.

[0054] Use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., in the claims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed, but are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another element having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term) to distinguish the claim elements.

[0055] In the claims, as well as in the specification above, all transitional phrases such as “comprising,” “including,” “carrying,” “having,” “containing,” “involving,” “holding,” and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, i.e., to mean including but not limited to. Only the transitional phrases “consisting of’ and “consisting essentially of’ shall be closed or semi-closed transitional phrases, respectively, as set forth in the United States Patent Office Manual of Patent Examining Procedures, Section 2111.03.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. A method for extracting phycoerythrin from seaweed, the method comprising: extracting bromoform from seaweed using a plant oil; disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase, wherein the aqueous phase comprises water and phycoerythrin from the seaweed; and separating the seaweed, the plant oil comprising the bromoform, and the aqueous phase comprising the phycoerythrin.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein separating the seaweed and the aqueous phase comprises centrifuging the seaweed.

3. The method of any one of claims 1 or 2, wherein separating the seaweed and the aqueous phase comprises pressing the seaweed.

4. The method of any one of claims 1-3, wherein disrupting the seaweed to produce the aqueous phase comprises expelling at least 30 wt% water from the seaweed.

5. The method of any one of claims 1-4, wherein disrupting the seaweed to produce the aqueous phase comprises expelling at least 50 wt% water from the seaweed.

6. The method of any one of claims 1-5, wherein disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase comprises expelling at least 70 wt% water from the seaweed.

7. The method of any one of claims 1-6, wherein disrupting the seaweed to produce the aqueous phase comprises pressing the seaweed.

8. The method of any one of claims 1-7, wherein disrupting the seaweed to produce the aqueous phase comprises freezing and thawing the seaweed.

9. The method of any one of claims 1-8, wherein the seaweed comprises Asparagopsis.

10. The method of any one of claims 1-9, wherein the oil comprises a halogenated compound.

11. The method of any one of claims 1-10, wherein the oil comprises bromoform.

12. The method of any one of claims 1-11, wherein the seaweed comprises Asparagopsis taxiformis.

13. The method of any one of claims 1-12, wherein the seaweed comprises Asparagopsis armata.

14. The method of any one of claims 1-13, wherein the oil comprises almond oil, apricot oil, argan oil, avocado oil, brazil nut oil, canola oil, cashew oil, coconut oil, colza oil, corn oil, copra oil, cottonseed oil, diacylglycerol oil, flaxseed oil, grapefruit seed oil, grapeseed oil, hazelnut oil, hemp oil, lemon oil, linseed oil, macadamia oil, mustard oil, olive oil, orange oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, peanut oil, pecan oil, pine nut oil, pistachio oil, pumpkin seed oil, rapeseed oil, rice bran oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, walnut oil, and / or vegetable oil.

15. The method of any one of claims 1-14, wherein disrupting the seaweed comprises heating the seaweed.

16. The method of claim 15, comprising heating the seaweed to a temperature of less than or equal to 40 °C.

17. The method of any one of claims 1-16, wherein disrupting the seaweed comprises cooling the seaweed.

18. The method of claim 17, comprising cooling the seaweed to a temperature of greater than or equal to -78 °C.

19. A method, comprising: immersing seaweed in an oil; disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase comprising water from the seaweed; and separating the seaweed, the oil, and the aqueous phase.

20. A method, comprising: extracting bromoform from seaweed using a plant oil; disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase, wherein the aqueous phase comprises water and phycoerythrin from the seaweed; separating the seaweed, the plant oil comprising the bromoform, and the aqueous phase comprising the phycoerythrin; producing biomass using the seaweed; purifying the phycoerythrin from the aqueous phase; and separating the bromoform from the plant oil.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein purifying the phycoerythrin from the aqueous phase comprises freezing the aqueous phase.

22. The method of any one of claims 20 or 21, wherein purifying the phycoerythrin from the aqueous phase comprises extracting the phycoerythrin into a solvent.

23. The method of any one of claims 20-22, wherein purifying the bromoform from the plant oil comprises extracting the bromoform into an organic solvent.

24. The method of any one of claims 20-23, wherein the biomass produced using the seaweed can be used an animal feed.

25. The method of any one of claims 20-24, wherein the biomass produced using the seaweed can be used a biostimulant.

26. The method of any one of claims 20-25, wherein the biomass produced using the seaweed can be used a feed additive.

27. A method, comprising: exposing seaweed to an oil; separating the seaweed and the oil; disrupting the seaweed to produce an aqueous phase comprising water from the seaweed; and separating the seaweed and the aqueous phase.

28. The method of claim 27, comprising immersing the seaweed in the oil.

29. The method of any one of claims 27 or 28, further comprising separating an additional phase from the water and the oil.

30. The method of any one of claims 27-29, wherein the oil comprises a halogenated compound.

31. The method of any one of claims 27-30, wherein the oil comprises bromoform.

32. The method of any one of claims 27-31, wherein the seaweed comprises Asparagopsis taxiformis.

33. The method of any one of claims 27-32, wherein the seaweed comprises Asparagopsis armata.

34. The method of any one of claims 27-33, wherein the oil comprises almond oil, apricot oil, argan oil, avocado oil, brazil nut oil, canola oil, cashew oil, coconut oil, colza oil, corn oil, copra oil, cottonseed oil, diacylglycerol oil, flaxseed oil, grapefruit seed oil, grapeseed oil, hazelnut oil, hemp oil, lemon oil, linseed oil, macadamia oil, mustard oil, olive oil, orange oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, peanut oil, pecan oil, pine nut oil, pistachio oil, pumpkin seed oil, rapeseed oil, rice bran oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, walnut oil, and / or vegetable oil.

35. The method of any one of claims 27-34, wherein disrupting the seaweed comprises heating the seaweed.

36. The method of claim 35, comprising heating the seaweed to a temperature of less than or equal to 40 °C.

37. The method of any one of claims 27-36, wherein disrupting the seaweed comprises cooling the seaweed.

38. The method of claim 37, comprising cooling the seaweed to a temperature of greater than or equal to -78 °C.

Images