Whey Phospholipid Enrichment via Membrane Filtration
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Solution Overview
Problem
It is challenging to produce high phospholipid whey products with acceptable microbiology without damaging the bioactive components, as harsh heat treatments can denature these components and traditional germ filtration alters the product composition.
Innovation Solution
A method involving membrane filtration with a pore size of 1.0-2 micrometers, combined with gentle heat-treatment, is used to enrich whey-derived compositions with phospholipids and optionally osteopontin, while maintaining low microbial contamination and preserving the bioactive components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If harsh heat-treatment is applied to reduce microbial content, then microbial load is reduced, but bioactive components are denatured or degraded
Solution Approach 1:
A membrane with pore size of 1.0-2 micrometers is introduced as an intermediary filtration barrier that selectively removes microorganisms while allowing bioactive components to pass through unchanged. This physical barrier approach eliminates the need for harsh thermal treatment, thus resolving the contradiction between microbial reduction and preservation of bioactive substances.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces thermal mechanical energy (harsh heat-treatment) with a physical filtration mechanism (membrane filtration). This substitution achieves microbial removal through size exclusion rather than thermal destruction, thereby preserving the structural integrity and bioactivity of heat-sensitive components.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If traditional germ filtration is used to reduce microorganisms, then microbial content is reduced, but product composition is altered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent specifies a precise pore size range (1.0-2 micrometers) for the filtration membrane, which is carefully selected to differentiate between the size of microorganisms and bioactive components. This parameter optimization enables selective filtration that reduces microbial content while maintaining the original product composition, as the membrane allows phospholipids, proteins, and other bioactive substances to pass through unchanged.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If membrane filtration with pore size of 1.0-2 micrometers is used, then microbial load is reduced with minimal composition change, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuous membrane filtration operation, where the filtration process runs continuously rather than in batch mode. This continuous operation maintains steady-state flux through the membrane, preventing membrane fouling accumulation and extending the effective filtration time without requiring interruptions for cleaning or maintenance, thus reducing overall processing time while maintaining effective microbial removal.
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 effectively produces whey-derived compositions with high phospholipid content and low microbial load, ensuring the preservation of bioactive components and improved energy efficiency through continuous operation.
Implementation Method 1
subjecting the liquid feed to membrane filtration to provide a filtration retentate and a filtration permeate
Implementation Method 2
if this microfiltration is combined with a gentle heat-treatment during sub-step iii) a whey-derived composition with a surprisingly low content of microorganisms is obtained
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a method of preparing a whey-derived composition enriched with respect to whey phospholipids by membrane filtration, and preferably also enriched with respect to other membrane components from whey. The membrane filtration is furthermore followed by a special microfiltration-based germ filtration which the inventors have found to be efficient for reducing the microbial content of the whey-derived composition while keeping nutritionally important components in the whey-derived composition. The invention furthermore relates to the whey-derived composition as such, use of the whey-derived composition as in ingredient in nutritional products, and to nutritional products comprising the whey-derived composition.