Reverse Osmosis Membrane for Polyol Recovery from Fermentation Steam
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for evaporative dehydration of PDO and BDO fermentation broths result in significant product loss and inhibit bacterial growth when steam condensate is reused, due to high concentrations of PDO and BDO, leading to increased energy consumption and equipment investment.
Innovation Solution
The method involves condensing and filtering the steam condensate through a reverse osmosis membrane to recover PDO and BDO, reducing water content to 5-25 wt% and reusing the retentate for further evaporation, while using the penetrant as a fermentation ingredient or for sewage treatment, thereby optimizing dehydration processes and reducing energy consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If multi-effect distillation is used to reduce product loss during concentration, then PDO and BDO loss is reduced, but equipment investment and energy consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the operating parameters of the evaporative dehydration process, specifically controlling the concentration to 30% water content under optimized conditions, and uses reverse osmosis with specific membrane selection to achieve separation at lower energy consumption compared to multi-effect distillation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts PDO and BDO from the steam condensate using reverse osmosis membrane separation, removing the harmful concentrated polyol solution from the fermentation ingredient while recovering the valuable products, thereby reducing loss without requiring energy-intensive distillation
2Loss of substance
If multi-effect distillation is used to reduce product loss during concentration, then PDO and BDO loss is reduced, but equipment investment increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive multi-effect distillation equipment with a more economical reverse osmosis system. The reverse osmosis membranes, while requiring periodic replacement, represent a lower initial investment and operational cost compared to the complex distillation equipment with packing or trays
Solution Approach 2:
The patent substitutes the mechanical separation process of distillation with a membrane-based reverse osmosis process, eliminating the need for complex distillation towers, packing, or trays, thereby reducing equipment investment while achieving comparable or better separation efficiency
3Adaptability or versatility
If steam condensate with high PDO and BDO concentration is reused for fermentation, then water resources recycling is improved, but bacterial growth is inhibited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes PDO and BDO from the steam condensate using reverse osmosis membrane separation, creating a purified fermentation ingredient suitable for bacterial growth while enabling water resources recycling. The membrane selectively retains polyols while allowing water and small molecules to pass through
Solution Approach 2:
The reverse osmosis membrane acts as an intermediary between the steam condensate and the fermentation process, selectively separating harmful concentrated polyol solution from usable water and small molecules, thereby enabling both water recycling and maintaining 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 approach significantly reduces PDO and BDO losses from 2-5% to 0.18% and 15-30% to 0.09%, improves bacterial growth conditions, and lowers energy consumption and equipment investment, achieving a yield of ≥99.5% with reduced wastewater and COD discharge.
Implementation Method 1
filtering the steam condensate through a reverse osmosis membrane to form a concentrated solution
Implementation Method 2
the fermentation broth is usually concentrated to remove most of water. During the evaporative dehydration
Data Source
AI summary
A method for extracting polyol from a fermentation process is disclosed. The preparing method includes rectifying and purifying PDO (1,3-propanediol) from a polyol fermentation broth after concentration to form a steam condensate, wherein the concentration is a evaporative dehydration; and filtering the steam condensate through a reverse osmosis membrane to form a concentrated solution, wherein the retentate of the reverse osmosis flows back to the evaporative dehydration, and the penetrant of the reverse osmosis can be reused as a fermentation ingredient, as cleaning water or for sewage treatment; and the water content of the concentrated solution after the evaporative dehydration is 5-25 wt %; and the yield of PDO is ≥99.5%. The preparing method meets the requirements of water resources recycling, reduces the production loss of PDO and BDO (2,3-butanediol) during the concentration, and greatly cuts down on the amount of wastewater.