Improvement of electrodialytic processes performances for biofood applications using innovative electric current conditions

尽管电渗析在食品、生物制药和生物技术工业中具有很强的潜在应用前景，但电渗析过程的一个常见问题是膜污染。最有问题的离子交换膜(IEM)污染问题是多肽和蛋白质的结垢和污染。因此，我们的研究计划试图了解膜特性和电流模式条件如何影响食品基质组分的污染和迁移，以及当生物食品基质进行电渗析时电对流涡的形成。本研究项目的假设是，电流模式(连续电流、反极性(RP)和脉冲电场(PEF))、电流模式(欠限、限制和过限)、电流模式参数(脉冲/暂停组合、RP持续时间)和膜的物理化学特性(纳米孔的大小和分布、亲水性/疏水性、离子交换能力)影响食物基质成分(矿物质、多肽和蛋白质)的运输、它们与膜的潜在相互作用以及应用电渗析过程后多肽部分的生物活性。根据与每个电渗析过程相关的最具问题的结垢类型(S)，我们为拟议的5年研究计划定义了三个具体目标：1)研究电渗析过程中离子交换膜的物理化学特性和脉冲电场条件对电对流涡形成的影响和食物基质成分(矿物质和多肽)对电对流涡形成的影响；2)研究双极膜电渗析过程中电流模式和参数对多肽污染、迁移选择性、回收率和生物活性的影响；3)了解PEF参数对双极膜电渗析过程中膜的矿物质和蛋白质污染的影响。本研究计划将有助于更好地理解食物基质成分/潜在污染的性质、膜特性/污染防止和电流模式/污染缓解之间的关系，以及对未来和现有应用中防止膜污染的帮助。它还将提供有关在防止污染方面扩大电渗析过程的相关信息，并将突出该技术在功能食品和保健食品领域的研究和应用的新领域。这一研究计划将导致科学知识和研究的重大突破，不仅对加拿大的行业，而且在国际上都是如此，并将是培养所需的高素质人才的独特机会。

Despite strong potential applications in the food, biopharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, a common problem with electrodialytic processes is membrane fouling. The most problematic ion-exchange membrane (IEM) fouling issues are scaling and fouling by peptides and proteins. Therefore, our research program seeks to understand how membrane characteristics and current mode conditions influence fouling and migration of food matrix components, as well as electroconvective vortex formation when biofood matrices undergo electrodialysis. The hypothesis of this research project is that the current mode (continuous current, reverse polarity (RP) and pulsed electric field (PEF)), current regime (underlimiting, limiting and overlimiting), current mode parameters (pulse/pause combinations, RP duration) and physicochemical characteristics of the membranes (nanopore size and distribution, hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity, ion-exchange capacity) affect the transport of food matrix components (mineral, peptides and proteins), their potential interactions with membranes and the resulting bioactivities of peptide fractions after application of electrodialytic processes. We defined three specific objectives for the proposed 5-year research program to answer this hypothesis according to the most problematic fouling type(s) related to each electrodialytic process: 1) To study the effects of the physicochemical characteristics of IEMs and PEF conditions on the formation of electroconvective vortices and IEM fouling mechanisms by food matrix components (mineral and peptides) during conventional electrodialysis (ED); 2) To study the impact of current modes and parameters on peptide fouling, migration selectivity, recovery yields and resulting bioactivities during electrodialysis with filtration membranes and 3) To understand the impact of PEF parameters on the prevention of mineral and protein fouling of membranes during electrodialysis with bipolar membranes.This research program will allow a better understanding of the relationships between food matrix components/nature of potential fouling, membrane characteristics/fouling prevention and current modes/fouling mitigation, as well as help to prevent membrane fouling in future and existing applications. It will also provide pertinent information about scaling up electrodialytic processes in terms of fouling prevention, and will highlight new areas of research and applications of the technology in the field of functional food and nutraceuticals. This research program will lead to a major breakthrough in scientific knowledge and research, not only for Canadian industries but also internationally and will be a unique opportunity to train needed highly qualified personnel.