Fermentation Defoamer Solubility at Sterilization Temperature
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fermentation defoamers face issues with reduced solubility and defoaming effectiveness due to precipitation or oil droplet formation during thermal sterilization, leading to decreased operational efficiency and yield in fermentation processes.
Innovation Solution
A defoamer is developed by adding propylene oxide to a mixture of fat or oil with glycerin or its propylene oxide adduct in a specific proportion, followed by block-wise addition of ethylene oxide, which enhances dispersibility and defoaming properties without forming precipitates or oil droplets during thermal sterilization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional defoamers are subjected to thermal sterilization, then sterilization is achieved, but the defoamer forms precipitates or oil droplets due to reduced solubility at high temperatures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the chemical composition parameters of the defoamer by controlling the molar ratio of ethylene oxide to propylene oxide (EO/PO ratio between 0.5-2.0) and the total alkylene oxide addition (10-20 mol per mol of fat/oil). This parameter optimization ensures the defoamer maintains adequate solubility at sterilization temperatures while retaining defoaming effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The defoamer is formulated as a composite system combining fat or oil, polyhydric alcohol, and controlled amounts of alkylene oxides (ethylene oxide and propylene oxide). This composite structure creates a balanced formulation where the hydrophobic fat/oil component provides defoaming action while the hydrophilic alkylene oxide chains maintain water solubility even at elevated sterilization temperatures.
2Ease of operation
If defoamer dilution is prepared at fermentation temperature, then immediate use is possible, but the defoamer has reduced dispersibility due to being above cloud point temperature
Solution Approach 1:
The defoamer is pre-formulated with optimized alkylene oxide content during manufacturing, which preliminarily establishes its solubility characteristics. This preliminary action ensures that even when diluted at fermentation temperature (above cloud point), the defoamer maintains adequate dispersibility without requiring pre-cooling, enabling immediate use.
3Temperature
If defoamer forms precipitate or oil droplets during sterilization, then thermal stability is achieved at high temperature, but defoaming effectiveness is reduced due to decreased defoamer concentration in liquid portion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the alkylene oxide addition parameters (10-20 mol total per mol of fat/oil, with EO/PO ratio of 0.5-2.0) to achieve a critical balance: enough hydrophilic character to maintain solubility at sterilization temperatures, but sufficient hydrophobic character to retain defoaming effectiveness. This parameter control prevents phase separation and ensures full defoamer concentration remains active.
4Stability of the object's composition
If cooling step is added to redissolve precipitate after sterilization, then defoamer solubility is restored, but process complexity and time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The defoamer composition is preliminarily designed with optimized alkylene oxide content during manufacturing, which preemptively prevents precipitate formation during sterilization. This preliminary compositional adjustment eliminates the need for subsequent cooling and redissolving steps, simplifying the overall process.
Solution Approach 2:
The problematic cooling and redissolving steps are extracted/removed from the sterilization process entirely. By formulating the defoamer with adequate solubility at sterilization temperatures, the process directly proceeds from sterilization to fermentation without intermediate treatment steps.
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
The defoamer maintains stability and effectiveness, allowing for rapid and continuous inhibition of foaming, thereby improving fermentation yield and efficiency by preventing precipitation and ensuring consistent performance across temperature changes.
Implementation Method 1
the defoamer is exposed to temperatures not lower than the cloud point as a result of the heating in the sterilization step and has reduced solubility in water
Implementation Method 2
The defoamer dilution is sterilized by heating in order to prevent microorganisms from coming into the fermentation vessel
Implementation Method 3
foam-breaking properties which enable the defoamers to come to break the foam from the moment of addition thereof
Implementation Method 4
foam-inhibiting properties which continuously inhibit foaming
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a defoamer for fermentation which has excellent dispersibility in water and forms neither a precipitate nor oil droplets when the dispersion is heated, and which is highly effective in defoaming fermentation media. This defoamer contains a reaction product obtained by mixing a fat or oil having an iodine value of 40 to 130 with glycerin or like in a molar ratio of from 3/2 to 1/2 to obtain a mixture, causing 4 to 17 mol of propylene oxide to add to 1 mol of the mixture, and then causing 20 to 40 mol of ethylene oxide and 70 to 110 mol of propylene oxide to block-wise add thereto in this order, the reaction product having an ethylene oxide/propylene oxide molar ratio of from 1/4 to 2/5.