Continuous lipase-catalyzed production of esters from crude high-oleic sunflower oil
Abstract
The objective of this work was to develop an economically relevant enzymatic process of butyl ester production using crude high-oleic sunflower oil. Novozym 435, a non-regiospecific biocatalyst, provided the best compromise between activity and butyl-ester yield. The inhibition caused by the presence of phopholipids in crude oil was eliminated by using tert-butanol. It demonstrates the key role of the medium polarity in order to insure the stability of a process. Initial substrate concentrations and their molar ratio were optimized in a continuous packed-bed reactor to maximize product yield and productivity. The best compromise was obtained for an initial oil concentration of 500 mM and a molar ratio of 5. It enabled a high productivity of 13.8 tons year-1 kg Novozym 435-1 with a butyl-ester purity of 96.5% to be obtained. Experiments with the continuous reactor were performed over 50 days without any loss of enzyme activity.
- Publication:
-
Bioresource Technology
- Pub Date:
- April 2011
- DOI:
- 10.1016/j.biortech.2011.01.041
- Bibcode:
- 2011BiTec.102.4954S
- Keywords:
-
- Lipase;
- Transesterification;
- Packed-bed reactor;
- Fatty acid alkyl esters;
- Crude high-oleic sunflower oil