Enzymes – an alternative cleaning agent for membranes in biorefineries?

• The pulp and paper industry is among the world most important industrial sectors. At present it focuses on the production of cellulose pulp fibers and electricity but transforming pulp mills into biorefineries can reduce the use of fossil fuel resources. Adjusting the processes and converting lignocellulosic materials into new environmental friendly products will enable the production of biochemicals, biofuels and advanced materials for a future bio-economy. The widely used thermomechanical pulping (TMP) process produces large quantities of process water containing cellulose, lignin, hemicellulose and extractives. An efficient separation of these wood chemicals is crucial for the pulp biorefinery concept. The pressure-driven membrane processes microfiltration (MF) and ultrafiltration (UF) are high potential technologies for the separation task. In this application MF and UF are confronted with membrane fouling resulting in flux reduction and retention alteration which have a major impact on the separation process economy. Using suitable cleaning agents can recover flux and retention leading to a sustainable process. During the separation of hemicellulose from TMP process water, severe membrane fouling occurred due to the presence of polysaccharides and proteins. A typical cleaning protocol in pulp biorefineries often includes the use of strong alkaline solutions at high temperatures resulting in short membrane life cycles. The use of enzymatic cleaning is environmental friendly and requires less harsh conditions. The aim of this work is to demonstrate the feasibility of cleaning membranes fouled by TMP process water with enzymes to recover flux and retention. Furthermore, the impact of different enzymatic cocktails as cleaning agents to enhance the efficiency of the cleaning step is discussed. Effective membrane cleaning is a key for the transformation of pulp mills into biorefineries. Overall, this presentation will show that enzymes are an alternative to common cleaning agents, resulting in longer membrane life cycle and less environmental impact.

Ämnesord

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Kemiteknik -- Kemiska processer (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Chemical Engineering -- Chemical Process Engineering (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Memrbanes, Fouling, Cleaning

Publikations- och innehållstyp

kon (ämneskategori)

ref (ämneskategori)