Electronic Journal of Biotechnology ISSN: 0717-3458
© 2000 by Universidad Católica de Valparaíso -- Chile
ORAL PRESENTATION

Application of solid/gas catalysis to the industrial production of esters sharing the natural label

S. Lamare*
Departement de Biotechnologie, Laboratoire de Génie Protéique et Cellulaire
Avenue Marillac, 17042 La Rochelle, Cedex 1, France
E-mail: slamare@univ-lr.fr

M.D. Legoy
Departement de Biotechnologie, Laboratoire de Génie Protéique et Cellulaire
Avenue Marillac, 17042 La Rochelle, Cedex 1, France
E-mail: slamare@univ-lr.fr

*Corresponding Author

Keywords: Biocatalysis, solid, gas, process, production


Oral Presentation

The development of non conventional biocatalysis has expanded the field of applications of enzymes and cells in new bioprocesses. Systems involving biocatalysts suspended in highly concentrated media, organic solvents supercritical, fluids or gaseous phases have overcome numerous problems such as the low solubility of apolar compounds in aqueous media, the modification of thermodynamic constraints encountered in aqueous systems or the functional stability of the catalyst itself.

Solid /gas catalysis presents many advantages compared to other systems. Its strength results mainly from the possibility to obtain very high conversion yields compatible with a high productivity for a minimal plant scale and minimizing greatly the downstream processes when they exist. Nevertheless, because the solid/gas catalysis is often synonymous with the use of high temperatures, the stability of the catalyst represents a key point for its industrial application. Thus, the use of the thermodynamic activity parameter for all the gaseous species has been developed in order to control precisely all the parameters involved in the catalyst's activity and stability[1,2].

Direct application of fundamental research to the development of a new cleaner process has been realized[3] for the production at the industrial scale of esters sharing the natural label starting from natural acids and alcohols and using a commercial lipase since esters represent an important class of aroma compounds. They often possess fruity odors and are widely used by the food and the fragrance industries. The biotechnological process that we developed, can be an alternative solution for producing naturally labeled esters, minimizing then constraints encountered in natural extraction, and offering closer economical costs compared to the one of the chemical processes. The application of solid/gas catalysis to this end will be discussed and the realization of a pilot plant will be presented.


[1] Lamare S., Legoy M.D., Biotechnol. Bioeng., 45, 387-397, 1995.

[2] Lamare S., Legoy M.D., Biotechnol. Bioeng. ,57, 1-8, 1997.

[3] Lamare S., Legoy M.D., International Patent, WO 99/04894, 1999.

 

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