In this study, a methodology for separation of chiral molecules, by using enhanced ultrafiltration system was developed. Benzoin was the model chiral molecule studied. In the scope of developing this methodology, some parameters were investigated in the preliminary ultrafiltration experiments in order to set the operation conditions for enhanced ultrafiltration experiments. Due to the slight solubility of benzoin in pure water, 15% (v/v) Polyethylene glycol (PEG 400) and 30 % (v/v) Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) were selected as cosolvents. Because of the high retention capacity of RC-10000 Da membranes for benzoin, a membrane saturation strategy was developed. In polymer enhanced ultrafiltration (PEUF) experiments bovine serum albumin (BSA) was used as ligand. Effects of ligand concentration and pH on total benzoin retention and on enantiomeric excess (ee %) were investigated. Benzoin concentration was almost kept constant at ~10 ppm and ~50 ppm for 15% (v/v) PEG 400 and 30 % (v/v) DMSO cosolvents, respectively. It was observed that the increase either in pH or in BSA concentration yielded an increase in total benzoin retention. In 15% (v/v) PEG 400-water, with BSA concentration of 10000 ppm, at pH 10, total benzoin retention reached to 48.7%. For this cosolvent, at different pH values and at different BSA concentrations, all ee % values were about or less than 10%. When 50000 ppm BSA was dissolved in 30 % (v/v) DMSO-water, total benzoin retention increased to 41.3% at pH 10 and ee % reached 16.7 % at pH 11. In enzyme enhanced ultrafiltration (EEUF) experiments, specific to benzoin, apo form of Benzaldehyde Lyase (BAL, E.C. 4.1.2.38) was used as ligand. These experiments were performed with constant ~ 10 ppm benzoin concentration in only 15% (v/v) PEG 400 &ndash / water solvent. Effect of BAL concentration on total benzoin retention and ee% was investigated. It was found that / for all the studied BAL concentrations in the range of 650- 1936 ppm total benzoin retention and ee % were kept almost constant at ~75% and ~60%, respectively.

In this study, resolution of racemic mandelic acid by enyzme enhanced ultrafiltration (EEUF) was studied. In order to develop a methodology, bovine serum albumin (BSA) was used as a model protein for polymer enhanced ultrafiltration (PEUF) experiments and the enzyme S-mandelate dehydrogenase was used for EEUF experiments. To be used for enzyme enhanced ultrafiltration experiments, the gene which is responsible from the production of S-mandelate dehydrogenase was isolated from Pseudomonas putida, expressed in Escherichia coli and the recombinant enzyme was produced. For PEUF experiments, effects of pH and ligand ratio were investigated. Total retention of mandelic acid increased with decrease in pH and total retention of mandelic acid reached to a maximum value of 74.4% at pH 4.3. For EEUF experiments, pH and ligand ratio effect on total retention, enantiomeric excess, enantioselectivity were investigated. Although apoenzyme was tried to be obtained by diafiltration and conversion was tried to be prevented, conversion occured especially at high pH values. To create the apoenzyme effect, three methods were studied. Enzyme conversion was prevented by sodium sulfite inhibition but enzyme did not retain mandelic acid. By oxygen saturation of enzyme, conversion was prevented, binding was achieved but enzyme showed no enantioselectivity. When the enzyme was diafiltrated at pH 10.0, total mandelic acid retention, enantiomeric excess and enantioselectivity reached to 77.2%, 38.9%, 2.27, respectively and the enzyme selectivity was reversed as R-selective.

Abstract Fertilizer industry often generates phosphorous rich wastewaters containing heavy metals. While phosphorous is a valuable compound for the industry, heavy metals hinder the recovery of phosphorous due to their detrimental effects on human health and the environment. Consequently, heavy metals must be removed from the wastewaters. In this study the use of micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration (MEUF) was evaluated for the removal of cadmium, copper, zinc and nickel from phosphorous rich wastewaters. This study has been conducted following a systematic methodology from single metal synthetic wastewaters to more complex synthetic and real wastewaters. The experimental work was conducted in a laboratory scale stirred cell using 3, 5 and 10 kDa regenerated cellulose membranes and in a cross flow semi-pilot scale equipment using a 10 kDa spiral wound polyethersulphone membrane. Statistical design of experiments was used as the research methodology to evaluate the effect of factors on the MEUF process performance as well as for finding optimal conditions. The factors studied were heavy metal, phosphorous and surfactant feed concentrations, pH, membrane nominal molecular weight limits, transmembrane pressure and cross flow velocity. The membrane performance was characterized by the heavy metal retention/rejection coefficients and the permeate flux. The experimental results showed that the removal of heavy metals from single synthetic wastewaters by MEUF is more efficient for more diluted systems. In complex systems containing phosphorous, simultaneous removal of heavy metals was successfully achieved obtaining rejection coefficients up to 80%. Phosphorous was not retained by the membrane showing the potential applicability of MEUF to purify phosphorous rich wastewaters. The study of metal complex formation and heavy metal competition has been shown to be very important in order to predict the MEUF results. Concentration polarization phenomenon was insignificant in the synthetic wastewaters but it was more severe when applying MEUF to real wastewaters. In addition, with real wastewaters SDS leakage was insignificant. This study has provided new and valuable knowledge regarding the applicability of MEUF to industrial wastewater treatment. / Tiivistelmä Lannoiteteollisuus tuottaa usein jätevesiä, jotka sisältävät huomattavia määriä fosforia, sekä pieniä määriä raskasmetalleja. Vaikka fosfori on tärkeä raaka-aine lannoiteteollisuudelle, jätevesissä olevat raskasmetallit kuitenkin estävät sen hyötykäyttöä fosforin lähteenä. Raskasmetallit ovat haitallisia sekä luonnolle että ihmisten terveydelle, joten niiden erottaminen jätevesistä on tärkeää. Tässä työssä tutkittiin miselliavusteisen ultrasuodatuksen (MEUF) käyttöä kadmiumin, kuparin, sinkin ja nikkelin poistamiseen fosforipitoisista jätevesistä. Väitöskirjatyössä tutkittiin systemaattisesti synteettisiä jätevesiä, jotka sisälsivät joko yhtä tai useita raskasmetalleja, sekä lannoitetehtaalta kerättyjä jätevesiä. Kokeet tehtiin laboratoriomittakaavan sekoituskennolla, jossa käytettiin 3, 5 ja 10 kDa:n regeneroituja selluloosakalvoja, sekä semi-pilot -mittakaavan spiraalielementillä, jonka materiaalina oli 10 kDa:n polyeetterisulfonikalvo. Väitöskirjatyössä hyödynnettiin tilastollista koesuunnittelua, jonka avulla arvioitiin muuttujien vaikutuksia MEUF-prosessin käyttäytymiseen. Koesuunnittelua hyödynnettiin myös optimiolosuhteiden määrittelemisessä. Koesuunnitelmien muuttujina olivat raskasmetallien, fosforin ja pinta-aktiivisen aineen pitoisuudet, pH, suodatuskalvojen katkaisukoot, paine sekä ristikkäisvirtauksen nopeus. Kalvon käyttäytymistä arvioitiin raskasmetallien erotustehokkuuden ja permeaattivuon avulla. Koetulokset osoittivat raskasmetallien erotuksen olevan tehokkainta synteettisistä, yhtä metallia sisältävistä jätevesistä, joiden raskasmetallipitoisuus oli pieni. Fosforia sisältävistä monimetalliliuoksista saavutettiin 80 %:inen raskametallien poistotehokkuus. Kalvoerotuksessa fosforipitoisuus ei muuttunut merkittävästi, mikä osoittaa MEUF:n olevan potentiaalinen menetelmä raskasmetallien poistamiseen fosforipitoisista jätevesistä. Metallikompleksien muodostumisen ja raskasmetallien välisen kilpailun ymmärtäminen osoittautuivat erittäin tärkeiksi MEUF-tuloksien ennustamisessa. Konsentraatiopolarisaatioilmiö ei ollut merkittävä käsiteltäessä synteettisiä jätevesiä, mutta teollisten jätevesien käsittelyssä ilmiöllä oli huomattava vaikutus permeaattivuohon. Kuitenkin teollisen jätevesien käsittelyssä SDS:n vuotaminen kalvon läpi oli merkityksetöntä. Tämä tutkimus on antanut uutta ja merkittävää tietoa MEUF:n soveltuvuudesta teollisten jätevesien käsittelyn.