Innovation of Expanded‐Bed Adsorption by Integrating Simulated Moving‐Bed Technology

Bio‐based industries need efficient downstream solutions to process complex streams. This was addressed through a technology integration approach, where expanded‐bed adsorption (EBA) is integrated with simulated moving‐bed (SMB) technology. Current work involved adaptation of an SMB apparatus and control principle to implement expanded‐bed level control. As an outcome, EBA‐SMB technology was successfully applied for purification of γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA). This resulted in two‐fold increase in productivity and a GABA purity ≥ 92 % in one step from unclarified fermentation broth, compared to ≥ 93 % purity in case of clarified broth and packed‐bed SMB. These results proved that EBA‐SMB technology is able to enhance process efficiency and economics of bioprocesses.