Intensified & Sustainable Enzymatic Acylation Processes on Innovative Macroporous/Mesoporous Materials – ISEAPIM3

Acylated amino acids or peptides are increasingly used, mainly as biosurfactants in ecologically friendly cleaning products, cosmetic and pharmaceuticals. The global biosurfactants market should rise by approximately 27% till 2018 with an increasing competition between industrial leaders. Acylated amino acids or peptides synthesis at an industrial scale is however generally based on the Schotten-Baumann chemical reaction, which (i) requires the use of acyl chlorides and organic solvents under highly alkaline conditions (ii) generates by-products such as chlorine, salted and organic effluents to be recycled, and (iii) is not regio- nor chemicaly selective. Within the framework of sustainable development, the aim of this project is therefore to design and intensify alternative and sustainable continuous acylation processes (with controlled regio/chemo selectivity) by using enzymatic heterogeneous catalysis and appropriate solvents. Different enzymes will be used. In order to avoid enzymes leaching in continuous reactors, we will preferentially make use of immobilization technics. For convenience, however, the well-known and commercially available Candida antarctica lipase B (CAL B) immobilized by adsorption on macroporous acrylic beads (NOVOZYM 435) will be used as a reference for reactions. The catalytic stability of enzymes will systematically be targeted through the triptych “carrier material-immobilization technic-process parameters”. Monolithic carriers will be investigated. Among other interesting features, they are easier to handle as compared to many beads used in packed bed reactors (PBR) and can show a higher accessible surface area for enzymes immobilization per unit volume of reactor. Given the numerous factors involved in the continuous process, design of experiments (DOE) combined with a structured process intensification analysis fed with collected experimental data will be used to reduce the number of requested experiments and achieve a mechanistic knowledge on limiting factors as well as on levers on which we should play for process optimization. Synthetized products, some of which will be of direct interest for the industrial biosurfactants producer and partner (SEPPIC) of the present project, will be subjected to techno-functional and biological tests. Finally, the knowledge achieved during the project will be used for the establishment of a Life cycle Assessment (LCA) in order to evaluate whether our enzymatic acylation processes can effectively lead to a technological breakthrough with the Schotten-Baumann chemical acylation.