US 11,946,017 B2
Method of separating lipids from a lysed lipids containing biomass
Manfred Bärz, Freigericht (DE); Marc Beiser, Nidda (DE); Georg Borchers, Bad Nauheim (DE); Stephen Robert Cherinko, Georgetown, SC (US); Mathias Dernedde, Bruchköbel (DE); Michael Diehl, Frankfurt (DE); Xiao Daniel Dong, Woodstock, MD (US); Jürgen Haberland, Haltern am See (DE); Michael Benjamin Johnson, Baltimore, MD (US); Robert Cody Kertis, Timmonsville, SC (US); Jochen Lebert, Glattbach (DE); Neil Francis Leininger, Winchester, KY (US); Kirt Lyvell Matthews, Sr., Fort Mill, SC (US); Holger Pfeifer, Hanau (DE); Christian Rabe, Grossostheim (DE); Shannon Elizabeth Ethier Resop, Olney, MD (US); Ginger Marie Shank, Winchester, KY (US); Vinod Tarwade, Ellicott City, MD (US); David Allen Tinsley, Versailles, KY (US); and Daniel Verkoeijen, Florence, SC (US)
Assigned to Evonik Operations GmbH, Essen (DE); and DSM IP Assets B.V., Te Heerlen (NL)
Appl. No. 16/317,305
Filed by Evonik Operations GmbH, Essen (DE); and DSM IP Assets B.V., Heerlen (NL)
PCT Filed Jul. 12, 2017, PCT No. PCT/EP2017/067585
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jan. 11, 2019,
PCT Pub. No. WO2018/011286, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 18, 2018.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/361,805, filed on Jul. 13, 2016.
Claims priority of application No. 16189213 (EP), filed on Sep. 16, 2016.
Prior Publication US 2020/0231898 A1, Jul. 23, 2020
Int. Cl. C11B 1/12 (2006.01); A23K 10/12 (2016.01); A23K 20/158 (2016.01); C11B 1/02 (2006.01)
CPC C11B 1/12 (2013.01) [A23K 10/12 (2016.05); A23K 20/158 (2016.05); C11B 1/025 (2013.01)] 13 Claims
 
1. A method of separating a polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs)-containing lipid from the debris of a biomass, comprising the following steps:
a) providing a suspension of a biomass comprising cells which contain a PUFAs-containing lipid;
b) lysing the cells of the biomass;
c) heating the suspension obtained in step b) to a temperature of 80° C. to 100° C., and adjusting the pH to a value of 9.0 to 11.5;
d) maintaining the temperature and pH value in the ranges of paragraph c) for at least 10 hours thereby forming a demulsified suspension;
e) harvesting the PUFAs-containing oil by:
i) adding an acid to the demulsified suspension to adjust it to a pH of 5.5 to 8.5;
ii) subsequently separating the resulting oil-containing light phase from the water, salt and cell debris-containing heavy phase;
wherein:
after lysing cells in step b), and prior to steps c) and d), the suspension is concentrated to a total dry matter content of 30 to 60 wt.-% by evaporation of water;
more than 90 wt.-% of the oil contained in the initial biomass is separated and isolated;
the method is carried out without the addition of any salts for salting out the oil.