Supercritical Fluid Extraction

Supercritical Fluid Extraction

• SF combines desirable properties of gases and liquids
– Solubility of liquids
– Penetration power of gases

• Process flexibility: Density of SF and solubility of a solute

in it can be changed in a continuous manner by change
of pressure

• Environmental perspective: Innocuous substances such

as water and carbon dioxide can be used as extracting
solvents instead of organics
 Applications of SFE
• Separation and purification of oils, flavours and medicinal
components

• Removal of grease and other fouling material

• Removal of impurities from chemical products

• Breaking of azeotropes

• Fractionation and purification of polymers e.g. removal of

unchanged monomers from polymers

• Food and beverage processing e.g. production of ‘decaf’ coffee,

alcohol free beer
 SFE: Solute solubility
• Density of a SF increases
with pressure i.e. more
solvent molecules per unit
volume
• Pressure packs the solvent
Solubility
of solute in
molecules closer and
SF
Mass/volume
facilitates the entrapment of
more solute molecules
• Dependence of solubility on
Pressure pressure can be utilized to
fine-tune the SFE process
 SFE: Enhanced penetration
• Diffusivity of solvent molecules in a SF approach
gaseous state diffusivity
• Solute diffusivity within a SF approaches that shown in
gaseous phase
Solvent
(SF)

Solute
 Density of SF

TR = 0.8
TR = 1.0
TR = 0.9

TR = 1.1

R
1

TR = 1.2

PR
 SFE: Types
• Liquid-SF extraction
– Similar to liquid-liquid extraction
– Examples:
• Increasing ethanol concentration in aqueous solution
• Removal of alcohol from beer

• Solid-SF extraction
– Similar to solid-liquid extraction (leaching)
– Examples:
• Removal of caffeine from coffee beans
• Polymer fractionation
• Extraction of flavours from rose petals
 Liquid-SF extraction: Ethanol
enrichment by supercritical CO2
Ethanol

Supercritical
Water
carbon dioxide

Probably not the best extracting fluid for ethanol

enrichment!
Production of supercritical fluid

Adiabatic compression

Adiabatic compression + heating

Enrichment of ethanol using
supercritical CO2

Pressure
Ethanol Separator
reduction
water valve
mixture
Extractor Recycled
carbon
Ethanol dioxide

Carbon
Compressor dioxide

Raffinate
 SFE using membrane
• Efficient segregation of streams
• Compactness of apparatus
• Large interfacial area
• Constant interfacial area which is independent of the
fluid velocity

Feed Raffinate

Extract SF
 Solid-SF extraction

Pressure
Separator
reduction
Coffee
valve
beans
Recycled
Extractor
carbon
Caffeine dioxide

Carbon
Compressor dioxide

Raffinate