2016 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Development of Reactive Separation Technology Employing the Synergy of Sub/Supercritical H2O-CO2 System
| Project/Area Number |
15K06559
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| Research Institution | Kumamoto University |
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Principal Investigator |
キタイン アルマンド 熊本大学, 大学院先端科学研究部(工), 助教 (50504693)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
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| Keywords | supercritical CO2 / subcritical H2O / reactive separation / natural products / hydrolysis / polyphenols / catalysts / synergy |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
Conversion of naturally occuring compounds into more bioactive and bioavailable materials by removing sugar moieties by hydrolysis are gaining popularity especially in food and pharmaceutical industries. However, conventional method employs harmful catalysts such as sulfuric acid yet obtaining low yield, while separation of the target compounds from the reaction products requires rather tedious approaches. To overcome these problems, this research aims to develop, optimize and evaluate by experimental and computational approaches the combined reaction and separation process employing the synergy of subcritical H2O and supercritical CO2. Application to hydrolysis of citrus bioflavonoids (e. g. hesperidin) into its aglycones (e. g. hesperitin) will be elucidated. The application is extended to other naturally occuring bioflavonoids and conversion of simple sugars to useful biochemicals and biofuels. It is expected that a novel “green” method for efficient hydrolysis and simultaneous separation of the product will be developed.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
2: Research has progressed on the whole more than it was originally planned.
Reason
Overall, the research is progressing rather smoothly according to proposed schedule. Collaboration with the group of Prof. Maria Jose Cocero of Valladolid University on the use of window-cell high pressure reactor for accurate determination of reaction kinetic parameters was also carried out by sending 1 master student for a 3-month internship under the Tobitate Ryugaku Japan Program.Two students under the Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS internship program also worked with an optimization of the reactive separation methods and determination of the solubility of the compounds in supercritical CO2, obtaining conversion over 70% and separation efficiency near 80%. I am currently working with a professor from University of the Philippines-Diliman in the development of a general mathematical model of the process.A related project is currently being carried out in collaboration with a private company.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
The proposed novel reactive-separation approach utilizing the synergy of supercritical CO2 and subcritical H2O developed here taking the hydrolysis of hesperidin as a model reaction will also be tested to other citrus flavanone glycosides, such as rutin to produce quercetin, naringin and narirutin to produce naringenin. Similar to hesperetin, quercetin naringenin, a substance found in grapefruit juice, is also more bioavailable and bioactive than the naturally available naringin and narirutin, exhibiting numerous functional properties. Other biomass-based materials such as simple sugars to produce biochemicals and biofuels will also be investigated.
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