Ammonia Pretreatment and Nanofiltration for Sugar Solution Purification
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Solution Overview
Problem
The production of sugar solutions from cellulosic biomass often results in fermentation inhibitors like hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF), furfural, and vanillin, which inhibit fermentation efficiency, and requires concentration of the sugar solution, while existing pretreatment methods either have low sugar yield or high environmental impact.
Innovation Solution
A method involving pretreatment of cellulosic biomass with ammonia to produce an ammonia-treated sugar solution, followed by enzymatic saccharification and purification to remove coumaramide and ferulamide using nano-filtration, achieving a sugar solution with improved fermentation efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If pretreatment-enzymatic saccharification method is used to produce sugar solution from cellulosic biomass, then environmental impact is reduced, but sugar yield becomes low
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing ammonia pretreatment on cellulosic biomass before enzymatic saccharification. This pretreatment step modifies the biomass structure in advance to improve enzyme accessibility and saccharification efficiency, thereby increasing sugar yield while maintaining the environmental benefits of the enzymatic method.
2Productivity
If concentration treatment is applied to increase sugar concentration, then fermentation efficiency is improved, but process complexity and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by optimizing the ammonia treatment conditions (concentration, temperature, time) to directly produce a sugar solution with suitable concentration and composition for fermentation. This approach achieves the desired fermentation efficiency by modifying the chemical parameters of the pretreatment step rather than adding complex post-treatment concentration equipment.
3Quantity of substance
If ammonia pretreatment is used to achieve high sugar yield, then coumaramide and ferulamide are produced as fermentation inhibitors, but fermentation efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by carefully controlling the ammonia treatment parameters (concentration, temperature, time) to optimize the balance between sugar yield and inhibitor formation. By adjusting these parameters, the process maximizes sugar release while minimizing the formation of coumaramide and ferulamide, or subsequently removes them through purification steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies the extraction principle by removing coumaramide and ferulamide from the sugar solution through purification steps after ammonia pretreatment and enzymatic saccharification. This separation step eliminates the harmful inhibitors while preserving the sugar components, thereby restoring fermentation efficiency.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This method enhances fermentation efficiency by removing specific inhibitors, improving sugar yield, and reducing environmental impact, thereby increasing ethanol production efficiency from cellulosic biomass.
Implementation Method 1
a pretreatment step of treating cellulosic biomass with a treatment agent containing ammonia to obtain an ammonia-treated product
Implementation Method 2
an ammonia-treated sugar solution preparation step of enzymatically saccharifying the ammonia-treated product to obtain an ammonia-treated sugar solution
Implementation Method 3
cellulose and hemicellulose are hydrolyzed with a diastatic enzyme such as cellulase
Implementation Method 4
a purified sugar solution preparation step of removing coumaramide and/or ferulamide in the ammonia-treated sugar solution by purification to obtain a purified sugar solution
Data Source
AI summary
A method of producing a sugar solution includes a pretreatment step of treating cellulosic biomass with a treatment agent containing ammonia to obtain an ammonia-treated product, an ammonia-treated sugar solution preparation step of enzymatically saccharifying the ammonia-treated product to obtain an ammonia-treated sugar solution, and a purified sugar solution preparation step of removing coumaramide and/or ferulamide in the ammonia-treated sugar solution by purification to obtain a purified sugar solution having a concentration of coumaramide and/or ferulamide of 10 to 1,100 ppm.