Experimental Investigation of Reactive Extraction of Levulinic Acid from Aqueous Solutions

The separation of levulinic acid from aqueous solutions is costly and non-ecofriendly in many cases. The major concerns are the low concentration of levulinic acid in fermentation broths and industrial downstreams. In this study, reactive extraction of levulinic acid from aqueous phase is proposed and its efficacy was investigated. Various extractants viz. tri-n-butyl phosphate, trioctylamine, and trioctylmethylammonium chloride along with i-octanol as a diluent were used. The extent of separation was investigated and various performance parameters like extraction efficiency, distribution coefficient, equilibrium complexation constant, and loading ratio were estimated. The number of transfer units, diffusivity, and mass transfer considerations were also discussed in the reactive separation system. Finally, the conceptual method was provided for the separation of levulinic acid using efficient reactive separation.