Device that produces sugar solution and method of producing sugar solution

• US 10,385,302 B2
• Filed: 01/06/2014
• Issued: 08/20/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/07/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toray Industries Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Toray Industries Incorporated
• Inventors: Minamino, Atsushi, Kishimoto, Jumpei, Kurihara, Hiroyuki, Yamada, Katsushige
• Primary Examiner(s): Beisner, William H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Henkel, Danielle B
• Application Number:
  US14/759,513
• Publication Number:
  US 20150353881A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,052 Days
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 23/58 Reaction vessels connected in series or in parallel combinations of bioreactors with other apparatus, C12M43/00
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 27/02 Stirrer or mobile mixing elements
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 27/06 with horizontal or inclined stirrer shaft or axis
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 29/00 Means for introduction, extraction or recirculation of materials, e.g. pumps pumps per se F04B
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 29/04 Filters; Permeable or porous membranes or plates, e.g. dialysis
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 35/08 Chemical, biochemical or biological means, e.g. plasma jet, co-culture
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 41/14 Incubators; Climatic chambers per se B01L1/00
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 41/24 inside the vessel
• CPC Class Codes: C12P 19/02 Monosaccharides 2-ketogulonic acid C12P7/60
• CPC Class Codes: C12P 19/14 produced by the action of a carbohydrase (EC 3.2.x), e.g. by alpha-amylase , e.g. by cellulase, hemicellulase
• CPC Class Codes: C13K 1/02 obtained by saccharification of cellulosic materials manufacture of fodder A23K10/32

Abstract

A device that produces a sugar solution from cellulose-containing biomass includes: a horizontal reaction tank that includes a stirring shaft provided along a horizontal direction in the horizontal reaction tank and a stirring blade provided to the stirring shaft, the horizontal reaction tank being configured to obtain a saccharified slurry by reacting the cellulose-containing biomass with a saccharification enzyme by stirring the cellulose-containing biomass and the saccharification enzyme; a vertical reaction tank configured to obtain a saccharified liquid by saccharifying the saccharified slurry; a saccharified slurry feed line that connects the horizontal reaction tank and the vertical reaction tank; and a warming part provided around the horizontal reaction tank or on a wall surface of the horizontal reaction tank and heats the horizontal reaction tank.

Claims

1. A device that produces a sugar solution from cellulose-containing biomass comprising:

a horizontal reaction tank that includes a stirring shaft provided along a horizontal direction in the horizontal reaction tank and a stirring blade provided to the stirring shaft, the horizontal reaction tank being configured to obtain a saccharified slurry by reacting the cellulose-containing biomass with a saccharification enzyme by stirring the cellulose-containing biomass and the saccharification enzyme;

a vertical reaction tank configured to obtain a saccharified liquid by saccharifying the saccharified slurry;

a saccharified slurry feed line that connects the horizontal reaction tank and the vertical reaction tank; and

a warming part provided around the horizontal reaction tank or on a wall surface of the horizontal reaction tank and heats the horizontal reaction tank,

wherein the horizontal reaction tank comprises;

a biomass inlet located at one side of the horizontal reaction tank and feeds the cellulose-containing biomass;

a saccharified slurry outlet located at another side of the horizontal reaction tank opposite to the biomass inlet and discharges the saccharified slurry,

a stemming part located at the saccharified slurry outlet and stems stream of the saccharified slurry,

the stemming part is a plate-shaped member contiguous with a bottom wall of the horizontal reaction tank and extending from the bottom wall toward a top wall of the horizontal reaction tank to form an opening between a top end of the plate-shaped member and the top wall such that the opening communicates with the saccharified slurry outlet, and

a height of the stemming part is adjustable to provide continuous discharge of the saccharified slurry.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the stirring shaft is heated.

3. The device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the stirring shaft and the warming part is a hollow body through which a heat transfer medium is capable of flowing.

4. The device according to claim 3, wherein a temperature of the heat transfer medium is 40°

C. to 60°

C.

5. The device according to claim 1, further comprising a biomass feed part located at a front stream side of the biomass inlet of the horizontal reaction tank and feeds the cellulose-containing biomass.

6. The device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a saccharified liquid feed line that discharges the saccharified liquid from the vertical reaction tank; and

a solid-liquid separation unit configured to obtain the sugar solution by separating a solid content from the saccharified liquid.

7. The device according to claim 6, further comprising a warm water feed line connected to the solid-liquid separation unit and feeds warm water into the solid-liquid separation unit.

8. The device according to claim 1, wherein

the horizontal reaction tank is provided with a plurality of such stirring shafts, and

each of the stirring shafts is provided with a plurality of stirring blades.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein the stirring blade has a cut-away part.

10. The device according to claim 1, wherein the vertical reaction tank comprises a second enzyme feed channel that feeds a saccharification enzyme into the vertical reaction tank.

11. The device according to claim 10, wherein a saccharification enzyme fed into the horizontal reaction tank and a saccharification enzyme fed from the second enzyme feed channel are of different types.

12. The device according to claim 1, wherein a saccharification reaction of the cellulose-containing biomass with the saccharification enzyme in the horizontal reaction tank is carried out in an amount of dry mass of thermochemically treated cellulose-containing biomass of 15% by mass to 50% by mass relative to a whole mass of the saccharified slurry.

13. The device according to claim 12, wherein the thermochemical treatment is selected from the group consisting of ammonia treatment, hydrothermal treatment, blasting treatment, alkali treatment and dilute sulfuric acid treatment.

15. The device according to claim 1, wherein the saccharified slurry outlet is surrounded by the stemming part and the wall surface of the horizontal reaction tank.

14. A method of producing a sugar solution from cellulose-containing biomass with a device that produces a sugar solution, the device comprising:

a horizontal reaction tank that includes a stirring shaft provided along a horizontal direction in the horizontal reaction tank and a stirring blade provided to the stirring shaft, the horizontal reaction tank being configured to obtain a saccharified slurry by reacting the cellulose-containing biomass with a saccharification enzyme by stirring the cellulose-containing biomass and the saccharification enzyme;

a vertical reaction tank configured to obtain a saccharified liquid by saccharifying the saccharified slurry;

a saccharified slurry feed line that connects the horizontal reaction tank and the vertical reaction tank; and

a warming part provided around the horizontal reaction tank or on a wall surface of the horizontal reaction tank and heats the horizontal reaction tank, the method comprising reacting the cellulose-containing biomass with the saccharification enzyme with stirring and with heat to obtain a saccharified slurry liquid,

wherein the horizontal reaction tank comprises;

a biomass inlet located at one side of the horizontal reaction tank and feeds the cellulose-containing biomass;

a saccharified slurry outlet located at another side of the horizontal reaction tank opposite to the biomass inlet and discharges the saccharified slurry,

a stemming part located at the saccharified slurry outlet and stems stream of the saccharified slurry, and

the stemming part is a plate-shaped member contiguous with a bottom wall of the horizontal reaction tank and extending from the bottom wall toward a top wall of the horizontal reaction tank to form an opening between a top end of the plate-shaped member and the top wall such that the opening communicates with the saccharified slurry outlet.