Recovery of glucose from aqueous hydrolysates

For a range of mixed waste streams, such as paper sludge or plastics rejects from the paper industry, it is not so easy to valorize the cellulose content. Examples include labels of bottles that are made from so-called tertiary cellulose, a cellulose that has been chemically modified to make it resistant against moisture (which is necessary when you put your beer in the fridge), and packaging composites that contain both cellulose and plastic materials. At the company Recell, they have developed a technology that can convert such difficult cellulose feedstocks (at least partially) into glucose. The resulting streams are rich in water, glucose, and in oligomeric and polymeric sugars, but also contain salts. For further downstream conversions we are looking for ways to concentrate the stream. Ideally, the glucose would be extracted, but that is a fairly difficult task. At the University of Twente we have been developing a liquid extraction process for acids, and it appears that the mechanism might also be applicable to other molecules with at least two oxygenate functional groups, such as diols including glucose. If we would be able to extract glucose effectively, this is a highly valuable development. This extraction mechanism is based on complexation with a metal. Upon addition of the metal to the solvent, it is anticipated that a complex is formed. Next to the metal the pH is an important factor. In this study you will work with us on the exploration of sugar extraction at various pH’s and solvent compositions, aiming for a breakthrough in sugar recovery from complex aqueous streams.

Assignment

You will investigate the use of

Metal Complexation-based extraction for glucose extraction from aqueous solutions
Investigation of the extraction at a range of conditions, including variation of the pH, to study its influence on the extraction

Elements of the study include:

Literature study on metal complexation and extraction
Study experimentally on the glucose extraction with and without metal from model solutions
Study the influence of the pH on the extraction of glucose
Write the report.

Contact info:

Supervision:
Prof. Dr. ir. Boelo Schuur - B.schuur@utwente.nl

Daily supervisor:
Kim Zijderveld