Solubilization of biomolecules in carbon dioxide based supercritical fluids.
Supercritical fluid (SF) carbon dioxide offers several advantages compared with organic liquid solvents for separations and reaction processes of thermally labile biomolecules.A major limitation is that the even moderately polar biomolecules are only slightly soluble. Experimental solubility and vapor pressure data were obtained for cholesterol, stigmasterol, and ergosterol in SF CO(2) with and without co-solvents over a pressure range of 100 to 350 bar. Small concentrations of certain co-solvents can increase solubilities of particular sterols by one or two orders of magnitude, but have little effect on other sterols due to complexes formed in the solid phase. The experimental data were correlated using component solubility parameters to obtain the unlike-pair attraction constant used in a modified van der Waals equation of state.
Wong
J M
JM
Department of Chemical Engineering University of Texas Austin, TX 78712.
Johnston
K P
KP