Extraction, commercial processes reaction-enhanced

Additional commercial processes are available for extraction of tea, hops, oriental herbs, tobacco leaves, and pharmaceuticals C02-enhanced oil recovery environmental appHcations such as extraction/flocculation of aqueous wastes reactions with iategrated separations such as aminations (ethylene... 

Reactive distillation is one of the classic techniques of process intensification. This combination of reaction and distillation was first developed by Eastman Kodak under the 1984 patent in which methyl acetate was produced from methanol and acetic acid. One of the key elements of the design is to use the acetic acid as both a reactant and an extraction solvent within the system, thereby breaking the azeotrope that exists within the system. Likewise, the addition of the catalyst to the system allowed sufficient residence time such that high yields could be obtained, making the process commercially viable. Other examples in which reactive distillation may enhance selectivity include those of serial reactions, in which the intermediate is the desired product, and the reaction and separation rates can be systematically controlled to optimize the yield of the desired intermediate. ... 

Novel mixtures of optical isomers of natural and kosher styrallyl alcohol (a-phenylethyl alcohol), and their corresponding acetate esters of styrallyl alcohol (a-phenylethyl acetate) were prepared by multiple fermentation processes and an azeotropic esterification reaction. In the first step, natural acetophenone was produced by bioconversion of cinnamic acid by Pseudomonas sp. (P), Comanonas sp, and Arthrobacter sp. 6). In the first microbial oxidation process, the side chain of cinnamic acid was oxidized to the ketone to form acetophenone that was transiently accumulated in the fermentation broth (P). The current commercial fermentation process yielded >5g/L of acetophenone in the fermentation broth following 2 days of incubation using Arthrobacter sp. The resulting acetophenone was recovered and purified from the fermentation broth by solvent extraction followed by fractional distillation. Acetophenone itself can be used in creating flavor formulations and in enhancement of aroma and taste or both. 

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