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

尽管电渗析技术在食品、生物制药和生物技术等行业有着巨大的应用潜力，但其存在的一个普遍问题是膜污染。离子交换膜（IEM）污染最严重的问题是多肽和蛋白质的结垢和污染。因此，我们的研究计划旨在了解膜特性和电流模式条件如何影响食品基质成分的污染和迁移，以及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））、电流状态（欠限制、限制和过限制）、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在应用电渗析过程后肽组分的生物活性。根据与每个电渗析过程相关的最具问题的污垢类型，我们为提出的5年研究计划确定了三个具体目标：1)研究常规电渗析（ED）过程中IEMs和PEF条件的物理化学特性对电对流涡形成的影响以及食物基质成分（矿物质和肽）对IEM污垢机制的影响；2)研究电流模式和参数对过滤膜电渗析过程中多肽污染、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矿物和蛋白质污染的预防作用。该研究项目将有助于更好地理解食物基质成分/潜在污染性质、膜特性/污染预防和当前模式/污染缓解之间的关系，并有助于在未来和现有的应用中预防膜污染。它还将提供有关扩大电渗析工艺在预防污染方面的相关信息，并将重点介绍该技术在功能食品和营养保健品领域的新研究和应用领域。这个研究项目将在科学知识和研究方面取得重大突破，不仅对加拿大的工业，而且对国际来说，这将是一个培养所需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.