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Separation Technologies (separation + technology)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Chemistry	66%
Life Sciences	25%

Selected Abstracts

Separation technologies for the recovery and dehydration of alcohols from fermentation broths,

BIOFUELS, BIOPRODUCTS AND BIOREFINING, Issue 6 2008
Leland M. Vane PhD
Abstract Multi-column distillation followed by molecular sieve adsorption is currently the standard method for producing fuel-grade ethanol from dilute fermentation broths in modern corn-to-ethanol facilities. As the liquid biofuels industry transitions to lignocellulosic feedstocks, expands the end-product portfolio to include other alcohols, and encounters more dilute alcohol concentrations, alternative separation technologies which are more energy efficient than the conventional approach will be in demand. In this review, alcohol recovery technology options and alcohol dehydration technology options for the production of ethanol and 1-butanol are reviewed and compared, with an emphasis on the energy footprint of each approach. Select hybrid technologies are also described. Published in 2008 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd [source]

Cover Picture: Electrophoresis 7'09

ELECTROPHORESIS, Issue 7 2009
Article first published online: 16 APR 200
Issue no. 7 is a special issue on "Biomarker Discovery and Related Topics". It has 18 articles distributed among four parts including genomic, proteomic, glycoproteomic and metabolomic markers. "New separation technologies, improvements of existing methods and intuitive, elegant applications are providing a representative snapshot on the "state-of-the-art" of the bioanalytical aspects of biomarker discovery today". In addition, as recognition of his significant contribution to the field, this special issue is dedicated to the 70th birthday of Professor Barry L. Karger. [source]

A review of pervaporation for product recovery from biomass fermentation processes,

JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY & BIOTECHNOLOGY, Issue 6 2005
Leland M Vane
Abstract Although several separation technologies are technically capable of removing volatile products from fermentation broths, distillation remains the dominant technology. This is especially true for the recovery of biofuels such as ethanol. In this paper, the status of an emerging membrane-based technology, called pervaporation, for this application is reviewed. Several issues and research priorities which will impact the ability of pervaporation to be competitive for biofuel recovery from fermentation systems are identified and discussed. They include: increased energy efficiency; reduction of capital cost for pervaporation systems; longer term trials with actual fermentation broths; optimized integration of pervaporation with fermentor; synergy of performing both alcohol recovery and solvent dehydration by pervaporation with dephlegmation fractional condensation technology; and updated economic analyses of pervaporation at various biofuel production scales. Pervaporation is currently viable for biofuel recovery in a number of situations, but more widespread application will be possible when progress has been made on these issues. Published in 2005 for SCI by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Process intensification aspects for steam methane reforming: An overview

AICHE JOURNAL, Issue 2 2009
Shrikant A. Bhat
Abstract Steam methane reforming (SMR) is the most widely used process in industry for the production of hydrogen, which is considered as the future generation energy carrier. Having been perceived as an important source of H2, there are abundant incentives for design and development of SMR processes mainly through the consideration of process intensification and multiscale modeling; two areas which are considered as the main focus of the future generation chemical engineering to meet the global energy challenges. This article presents a comprehensive overview of the process integration aspects for SMR, especially the potential for multiscale modeling in this area. The intensification for SMR is achieved by coupling with adsorption and membrane separation technologies, etc., and using the concept of multifunctional reactors and catalysts to overcome the mass transfer, heat transfer, and thermodynamic limitations. In this article, the focus of existing and future research on these emerging areas has been drawn. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2009 [source]

Exploring the proteome of meningococcal outer membrane vesicle vaccines

PROTEOMICS - CLINICAL APPLICATIONS, Issue 9 2007
Jun X. Wheeler Dr.
Abstract Neisseria meningitidis, one of the principal causes of bacterial meningitis and septicemia, continues to present a challenge for vaccine developers. While significant progress has been made in the development and implementation of conjugate vaccines, which are based on the capsular polysaccharide of the organism, this approach has failed to produce a vaccine against organisms expressing a serogroup B capsule. The completion of the first meningococcal genome sequences in 2000 provided new ways of meeting this challenge. One approach has been to learn more about meningococcal biology and pathogenesis through exploring its proteome. This article reviews the results of ten recent studies of the meningococcal proteome and compares the different methodologies employed. Not surprisingly, given the renewed impetus to develop a comprehensive vaccine and the continuing clinical development of outer membrane vesicle vaccines, many of these studies focus on the proteome of the outer membrane fraction. As in other areas of proteome research, the direct comparison of data from different studies is hampered by the lack of standardization of separation technologies and data formats. Nevertheless, proteomic analysis, especially when combined with detailed knowledge of meningococcal population structures, represents a powerful tool in the development of vaccines against this important pathogen. [source]

Design and synthesis of separation process based on a hybrid method

ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 6 2009
Chunshan Li
Abstract A new general hybrid methodology for separation process synthesis and design is proposed, which considers different separation technologies by integrating mathematical modeling,Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) with heuristic approaches and thermodynamic insights. The methodology can provide suitable guidance for the initial separation process design and energy saving. Firstly, a general separation synthesis system based on thermodynamic insights is developed to select suitable separation techniques before sequencing, which reduces the complexity and size of synthesis search space. Then, the pseudo-component concept is proposed and used to deal with the azeotrope contained in the mixture, which widens the scope of the application of the proposed methodology. The AHP method is used to make a separation sequence by pairwise comparison matrices. Lastly, the separation of the pseudo-component will be considered, and it performs energy integration and a detailed process design. Application of the proposed methodology is highlighted through two industrial examples: one is the separation synthesis of a light-end refinery mixture. The other is azeotrope system, the mixture of phenol, o -cresol, p -cresol, and m -cresol. Copyright © 2009 Curtin University of Technology and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Separation technologies for the recovery and dehydration of alcohols from fermentation broths,

Considerations for the Recovery of Recombinant Proteins from Plants

BIOTECHNOLOGY PROGRESS, Issue 4 2004
Todd J. Menkhaus
The past 5 years have seen the commercialization of two recombinant protein products from transgenic plants, and many recombinant therapeutic proteins produced in plants are currently undergoing development. The emergence of plants as an alternative production host has brought new challenges and opportunities to downstream processing efforts. Plant hosts contain a unique set of matrix contaminants (proteins, oils, phenolic compounds, etc.) that must be removed during purification of the target protein. Furthermore, plant solids, which require early removal after extraction, are generally in higher concentration, wider in size range, and denser than traditional bacterial and mammalian cell culture debris. At the same time, there remains the desire to incorporate highly selective and integrative separation technologies (those capable of performing multiple tasks) during the purification process from plant material. The general plant processing and purification scheme consists of isolation of the plant tissue containing the recombinant protein, fractionation of the tissue along with particle size reduction, extraction of the target protein into an aqueous medium, clarification of the crude extract, and finally purification of the product. Each of these areas will be discussed here, focusing on what has been learned and where potential concerns remain. We also present details of how the choice of plant host, along with location within the plant for targeting the recombinant protein, can play an important role in the ultimate ease of recovery and the emergence of regulations governing plant hosts. Major emphasis is placed on three crops, canola, corn, and soy, with brief discussions of tobacco and rice. [source]

Radiation Grafted Membranes for Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells,

FUEL CELLS, Issue 3 2005
L. Gubler
Abstract The cost of polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) components is crucial to the commercial viability of the technology. Proton exchange membranes fabricated via the method of radiation grafting offer a cost-competitive option, because starting materials are inexpensive commodity products and the preparation procedure is based on established industrial processes. Radiation grafted membranes have been used with commercial success in membrane separation technology. This review focuses on the application of radiation grafted membranes in fuel cells, in particular the identification of fuel cell relevant membrane properties, aspects of membrane electrode assembly (MEA) fabrication, electrochemical performance and durability obtained in cell or stack tests, and investigation of failure modes and post mortem analysis. The application in hydrogen and methanol fuelled cells is treated separately. Optimized styrene,/,crosslinker grafted and sulfonated membranes show performance comparable to perfluorinated membranes. Some properties, such as methanol permeability, can be tailored to be superior. Durability of several thousand hours at practical operating conditions has been demonstrated. Alternative styrene derived monomers with higher chemical stability offer the prospect of enhanced durability or higher operating temperature. [source]

Patents and Innovation in Cancer Therapeutics: Lessons from CellPro

THE MILBANK QUARTERLY, Issue 4 2002
Avital Bar-Shalom
How scientific knowledge is translated into diagnostic and therapeutic tools is important to patients with dread diseases as well as to regulators and policymakers. Patents play a crucial role in that process. Indeed, concern that the fruits of federally funded research would languish without commercial application led to the passage of the Bayh-Dole Act (PL 96-517), which reinforced incentives to patent the results of inventions arising from federally funded research (Eisenberg 1996). Subsequently, rates of patenting among U.S. academic institutions have increased (Henderson, Jaffe, and Trajtenberg 1988). A recent survey by the Association of University Technology Managers counted 20,968 licenses and options from 175 academic institutions and 6,375 patent applications filed in fiscal year 2000 (Pressman 2002). Analysis suggests that the number of academic patents was already rising when the Bayh-Dole Act was passed in 1980 (Mowery et al. 2001), but it is clear that the act reinforced the patenting norm in research universities and mandated a technology transfer infrastructure at those universities that had not yet established a technology licensing office. This article discusses the interaction between intellectual property and cancer treatment. CellPro developed a stem cell separation technology based on research at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. A patent with broad claims to bone marrow stem cell antibodies had been awarded to Johns Hopkins University and licensed to Baxter Healthcare under the 1980 Bayh-Dole Act to promote commercial use of inventions from federally funded research. CellPro got FDA approval more than two years before Baxter but lost patent infringement litigation. NIH elected not to compel Hopkins to license its patents to CellPro. CellPro went out of business, selling its technology to its competitor. Decisions at both firms and university licensing offices, and policies at the Patent and Trademark Office, NIH, and the courts influenced the outcome. [source]

Design of Simulated Moving Bed Plants for Reduced Purities

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY (CET), Issue 1 2010
M. Fütterer
Abstract Simulated moving bed (SMB) chromatography is an established separation technology, where chromatographic columns are interconnected to a ring. The feeding and drains are switched over cyclically, such that a continuous separation becomes possible. For a faultless operation, the volumetric flow rates and switching time must be carefully adjusted. Therefore, it is desirable to calculate these values in dependence of the model parameters exactly. In this contribution, a new method is introduced to compute operating points for dispersion-free SMB plants and to predict the associated time trajectories of the concentrations at the drains in cyclic steady state for user-specified purities and degree of robustness. Simulation results are presented to show the potential of this new method. [source]

New challenges and innovations in separations technology

AICHE JOURNAL, Issue 5 2001
Frank Notaro
No abstract is available for this article. [source]