Recent Patents on Chemical Engineering
ISSN: 1874-4788 - Volume 1, 2008
Recent Patents on Chemical
Engineering
Volume 1, Number 2, June 2008
Contents
Scrubber Designs for Enzyme-Mediated Capture of CO2
Pp. 93-105
Olivier Lacroix and Faïçal
Larachi
[Abstract]
Membranes in the Downstream Processing of Biotech
Manufactured Drugs Pp. 106-112
Anthony Allegrezza
[Abstract]
Catalysis in the Petroleum Naphtha Catalytic Reforming
Process Pp. 113-125
Ahmed K. Aboul-Gheit and Salwa
A.-W. Ghoneim
[Abstract]
Recent Patents on Activated Carbon Production and
Applications Pp. 126-140
Mohamed Chaker Ncibi, Borhane Mahjoub, Mongi
Seffen and Sarra Gaspard
[Abstract]
New Processes in Seawater Desalination Pp.
141-150
Aiman E. Al-Rawajfeh and Mohamed A.
Zarooni
[Abstract]
Ultrafiltration and Virus Removal: A Mini Review
of Recent Patents Pp. 151-156
Angayar K. Pavanasam and Ali Abbas
[Abstract]
Particle Formation Techniques Using Supercritical
Fluids Pp. 157-169
Jun Li and Edmundo G. Azevedo
[Abstract]
Patent Selections Pp. 170-173
Abstracts
[Back to top]
Scrubber Designs for Enzyme-Mediated Capture of CO2
Olivier Lacroix and Faïçal
Larachi
Carbon dioxide is the most abundantly emitted greenhouse
gas for which several technologies are being developed and
intensively studied for capture and storage, except retrofit
of amine scrubbers, none is proven at the commercial scale
for treating post-combustion stack gases. Amine scrubbing,
membrane separation, wet and dry mineral carbonation, pressure,
temperature and electrical swing adsorptions, have been thoroughly
reviewed in the 2005 survey by the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC). However, an innovative approach
that has escaped the attention of the recent IPCC concerns
using biocatalysts for carbon dioxide hydration to bicarbonate.
This review critically evaluates the recent patent literature
regarding the different scrubber configurations in use for
supporting carbonic anhydrase (CA), an ultrafast zinc-bearing
metalloenzyme which catalyzes CO2
hydration to bicarbonate. It describes two membrane contactors
using free soluble CA, the first one releasing gaseous CO2
and the second one being used to produce precipitated calcium
carbonate (PCC). It also describes two contactors using immobilized
CA, namely counter-current and cross-co-current packed columns,
and two other contactors using either free or particle-immobilized
CA. The review also deals with the use of a cohort of enzymes
mimicking metabolic pathways to capture CO2
and potentially produce useful organic compounds.
[Back to top]
Membranes in the Downstream Processing of Biotech
Manufactured Drugs
Anthony Allegrezza
This review covers synthetic membranes used in the downstream
(post fermenter) processing of biotherapeutic proteins manufactured
in the biotechnology industry. Biotherapeutics are very expensive
proteins, made in gram per liter quantities, in a highly regulated
industry. Microfiltration, ultrafiltration, virus removal
and adsorption membranes separate and purify the product proteins
in the several process steps between the fermenter and the
final filled vial. Patent activity for these specialized membranes,
primarily in 2006-2007, was reviewed for new membrane development
and for novel processes using these membranes.
[Back to top]
Catalysis in the Petroleum Naphtha Catalytic Reforming
Process
Ahmed K. Aboul-Gheit and Salwa
A.-W. Ghoneim
Before the US. Patent (1949) by Haensel wherein platinum
was used as the active metal component in the industrial catalytic
reforming catalysts, molybdenum and /or chromium oxides were
used but were suffering from very rapid deactivation by coke
even when used under high pressures. Platinum containing
catalysts enjoyed very high selectivity via producing high
yields of high octane C5+
reformates even at relatively much lower pressures. Improvements
were then carried out; some concerned with modifying the metal
component, and others concerning modifying the support as
well as improving the processing schemes. So many patents
were disclosing bimetallic or even polymetallic catalysts
containing primarily platinum and/or rhenium
or iridium, or their combinations, in addition to
tin, zinc, germanium, bismuth, phosphorus,
or chlorine, etc. These catalysts acquired advantageous
activities, selectivities and long time-on stream with maintaining
high yields of high octane motor gasoline.
[Back to top]
Recent Patents on Activated Carbon Production and
Applications
Mohamed Chaker Ncibi, Borhane Mahjoub, Mongi
Seffen and Sarra Gaspard
In the present paper, a review of the production methods
of activated carbons from various kinds of precursors and
their industrial use is presented, based on recently developed
patents. The main discussion is divided into two major parts:
(i) the activated carbons fabrication industry starting from
the choice of the precursor to the activation of the carbonaceous
materials and (ii) their diverse applications. Dealing with
the activated carbons precursors, recent patents pointed out
the beneficial use of several bioresources, agro-industrial
wastes, used tires and newspapers for example. In addition,
inventors proposed different kinds of fabrication process,
with respect to the field in which the activated carbon will
be used including wastewater and air treatment, fuel purification
and gold recovery. Besides, to enhance the overall economical
benefit in using activated carbons, other researchers developed
some innovative techniques to regenerate those costly materials,
for further utilization of the carbon itself or the recovery
of the already sorbed precious compounds. Hence, this review
article summarizes recent and important patents relating to
the chemical engineering of activated carbons.
[Back to top]
New Processes in Seawater Desalination
Aiman E. Al-Rawajfeh and Mohamed A.
Zarooni
Desalination refers to water treatment processes that
remove salts from seawater, brackish water or industrial brine
solutions. This work reviews potential processes for low cost
seawater desalination processes including co-precipitation,
capacitive deionization (CDI), forward osmosis (FO) and gas
hydrates (GH). Coprecipitation process deals with supersaturating
the saline solution, up to 80%, by addition of chemical reagents
which results in the precipitation of some of the salts in
seawater. The capacitive deionization (CDI) process works
on the basis of electrostatic adsorption of ions (e.g. Na+,
Cl-, etc.), from the seawater, on a charged pair
of high surface carbon electrodes. Carbon electrodes are used
due to its conductivity and large surface area that offers
a high capacitance and holds electrostatic charge. For high
salinity applications, a charge barrier has been added and
the process has been given a stage-wise configuration to reduce
costing. The forward osmosis (FO) process draws water from
the saline feed water by using a highly concentrated draw
solution. The draw solution must have high osmotic pressure,
contain solutes which are too large to pass through the pores
of the membrane and simple and economic to remove and recycle.
In gas hydrates desalination, a gas or mixture of gases is
brought into contact with the seawater under appropriate conditions
of pressure and temperature to form hydrate. The hydrates
are then brought to a region of higher temperature and lower
pressure, where it dissociates to release fresh water and
the hydrate-forming gas. These processes (if scalable) could
be cheaper than currently used technologies. The average energy
consumption of the capacitive deionization, forward osmosis
and gas hydrate processes are 2.5, 1.2 and 27 kWh / m3
which correspond to averages costs of 0.1, 0.6 and 3.5 $ /
m3, respectively, which represents
a significant reduction in the total desalination cost in
the case of CDI and FO processes. The present article deals
with new patents in seawater desalination process.
[Back to top]
Ultrafiltration and Virus Removal: A Mini Review of
Recent Patents
Angayar K. Pavanasam and Ali Abbas
In this paper, virus purification and removal by ultrafiltration
are reviewed with specific focus on the patent literature.
Membrane ultrafiltration is a pressure driven process which
has a wide spectrum of industrial applications but is most
attractive for sensitive biological streams carrying molecules
like proteins. This process has thus naturally been adopted
for the removal of viruses from blood and biopharmaceutical
streams as well as for virus removal from drinking water.
Safety regulations and associated penalties provide further
incentives for limiting virus titers in such bioprocessing.
Virus ultrafiltration aims at flux improvement, higher efficiency
of removal and elongated filter life. In this regard, the
proper choice of membrane material and technique is essential.
Recent patents show strives in two directions namely inventions
on membrane material design and filtration configuration and
operation (methods). The diversity of biological fluids is
seen to be a continuous challenge for researchers aiming for
generic filtration methods for virus removal.
[Back to top]
Particle Formation Techniques Using Supercritical
Fluids
Jun Li and Edmundo G. Azevedo
In the last decade, the supercritical fluid (SCF)-assisted
technology generation of micro- or nano- particles of organic,
inorganic, or their composite compounds has attracted a growing
interest for increasingly sophisticated applications among
scientists in various fields. The purpose of this review is
to summarize the recent patent literature concerning particle
formation techniques using SCFs. Three distinct classes were
grouped and surveyed: physical approach, chemical approach,
and physico-chemical processes. For the first class, patents
are reviewed related to rapid expansion of supercritical solution
(RESS), supercritical anti-solvent (SAS), atomization with
assistance of SCFs (e.g., particle generation from gas-saturated
solutions, carbon dioxide nebulization with a bubble-dryer,
and supercritical assisted atomization), emulsion / suspension-drying
process, and impregnation with assistance of SCF. For the
second class, patent literature relevant to processes that
use SCF as a reactant, i.e. supercritical hydrothermal / solvothermal
synthesis, processes that use a SCF as solvent (e.g., thermal
decomposition with a supercritical solvent, polymerization
in SCFs, and reaction in SCF microemulsion) is summarized.
For the third class, patent information concerning reaction
SCF drying and reaction-RESS/SAS is introduced.
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