Quasi-Continuous Production and Separation of Lysozyme Crystals on an Integrated Laboratory Plant

Abstract

Vacuum crystallization with subsequent solid–liquid separation is a suitable method to produce and separate the temperature-sensitive protein lysozyme. The conventional process is performed batch-wise and on different devices, which in turn leads to disadvantages in terms of energy efficiency, contamination risk and process control. This publication therefore focuses on the application of the previously multistage process to a quasi-continuous, integrated single plant. The transfer occurs successively and starts with the substitution of the batch vessel by a process chamber. Afterwards, the filtration scale is increased and the formerly deployed membrane is replaced by an industrial filter cloth. Based on the results of these experiments, the complete process chain is successfully transferred to an integrated laboratory plant.

Keywords

• crystallization
• filtration
• protein crystals
• integrated process design
• µCT imaging