Electrofiltration of Biopolymers

Downstream processing of bioproducts, based on the number of purification steps involved, is the most expensive part in biotechnology and food production processes. Combination of several purification steps, including membrane filtration and electrophoresis, within a single technique is known as electrofiltration-a process based on application of electric field on a dead-end filtration system parallel to the filtrate's flow direction. In this process, biopolymers, generally charged molecules with high viscosity, undergo both electrophoretic and hydrodynamic forces, reducing the thickness of the filter cake formed. As a result, electrofiltration can reduce processing time to minutes instead of hours when using conventional filtration. The objective of the present review is to assess the possibilities to purify technically and commercially important biopolymers like poly(3-hydroxybutyrate), hyaluronic acid, chitosan and xanthan by electrofiltration.