Room-Temperature Onium Salt Composition for Polysaccharide Solubility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing onium salts have low solubility for polysaccharides such as cellulose and chitin, requiring heating to achieve solubility, which limits their use as solvents at room temperature.
Innovation Solution
Development of an onium salt represented by Formula (1) with specific hydrocarbon and heteroatom groups that enhances solubility of polysaccharides at temperatures between 10 to 50°C, particularly around room temperature (25°C).
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If conventional onium salts are used as solvents for polysaccharides, then the solubility is improved, but heating is required which increases energy consumption and reduces ease of operation at room temperature
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the chemical structure of onium salts by changing parameters such as the cation type (imidazolium, pyridinium, trialkylammonium), anion type (carboxylate, sulfate, phosphate), and alkyl chain length/composition to achieve high polysaccharide solubility at room temperature without heating. Specifically, Formula (1) defines onium salts with R1-R6 groups that can be adjusted to optimize solubility while maintaining room temperature operation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates composite solvent systems by combining onium salts with specific carboxylate anions (Formula 4) and optionally organic solvents (Formula 5) to form liquid compositions that enhance polysaccharide solubility. The composite nature of these solvent systems allows tuning of solubility properties while maintaining low operating temperatures
2Quantity of substance
If heating is applied to improve polysaccharide solubility in onium salts, then solubility increases, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical parameters of the onium salt structure (Formula 1) to inherently provide higher polysaccharide solubility at low temperatures, eliminating the need for heating. The specific combination of cation (R1-R3) and anion (R4) groups in Formula (1) creates strong interactions with polysaccharide chains through hydrogen bonding and electrostatic forces, achieving solubility without thermal energy input
3Quantity of substance
If conventional onium salts are used for chitin dissolution, then some solubility is achieved, but sufficient solubility requires heating to about 100°C
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the onium salt structure parameters to specifically enhance chitin solubility at low temperatures. The onium salts in Formula (1) with specific anion groups (carboxylate, sulfate, phosphate) form strong hydrogen bonds with chitin's hydroxyl and amine groups, disrupting chitin's crystalline structure and enabling dissolution at 10-50°C without requiring 100°C heating
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 onium salt achieves high solubility of polysaccharides at room temperature, enabling efficient recovery methods and compositions for polysaccharide recovery.
Implementation Method 1
Onium salts have been proposed as solvents for dissolving cellulose... The present invention provides an onium salt with high polysaccharide solubility at 10 to 50° C., particularly at a temperature around room temperature (25° C.)
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to an onium salt, a liquid composition comprising the onium salt and polysaccharides, and a polysaccharide recovery method. According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an onium salt with very high polysaccharide solubility at 10 to 50° C., particularly at a temperature around room temperature (25° C.). It is also possible to provide a liquid composition comprising the onium salt and polysaccharides as a composition suitable for recovering polysaccharides, and a method for recovering polysaccharides efficiently using such a liquid composition comprising the onium salt and polysaccharides.