Thermodynamic characterization and modeling of aqueous two- phase systems composed by ionic liquids

Abstract

As an alternative proposal to conventional extraction methods, aqueous two-phase systems (ATPS) are an effective tool for the separation and purification of bioactive products. These are liquid-liquid extraction systems composed of two phases that coexist in equilibrium due to the dissolution of at least two pairs of solutes in water, which are selectively distributed between the phases. In order to scale up, it is indispensable the evaluation of the variability sources and thus the understanding as regards to the impact of each variable's changes on the performance of the entire bioprocess. The use of predictive process models, which enable to simulate ATPS behavior under varying conditions, are presented as an alternative to the experimental analysis, a procedure that can often be time-consuming and costly. In this sense and aiming at the implementation of these methods at industrial level, the present project aims to study the thermodynamic models that govern the ATPS and then, to perform the liquid-liquid equilibrium modeling of these systems using numerical computation softwares. The first phase of this work consists at the thermodynamic characterization of the phase equilibrium of different ATPS containing ionic liquids (LIs). In the second phase of this project, the liquid-liquid equilibrium will be modeled using pre-determined thermodynamic models, in Fortran language. In the last stage of this study a code will be developed in Matlab® to estimate the thermodynamic parameters of biphasic aqueous systems.