Applied waste-free recovery of methanol - A sustainable solution for chromatography laboratories

In this paper, we present applied methanol recycling technology utilising chromatographic applications, which has been designed for an academic-size institution. The procedure is combined out of proper recovery technique and the biodegradation method intended for postprocessing residues. Additionally, analytical methods controlling the quality of the process are described in detail in order to enable full transfer of the proposed methodology to the analogous institution. The recovered solvent is of relatively high purity (>99.92%), containing traces of water and volatile compounds. The spectral purity is sufficient to employ recycled methanol in HPLC applications where low wavelength detection is necessary. Biodegradation of distillation first-cuts and still bottoms is implemented using isolated strains of Methylobacterium organophilum. During the biodegradation process, a series of carotenoids are biosynthesized, which are of a high commercial value. The proposed application, therefore, offers not only a sustainable, waste-free solution in handling methanol waste, but can also serve as a potential source of value.