Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) assisted design and prototyping of the immiscible drop separation section for an intensified perstraction system

Bioprocesses development is a fundamental research area nowadays, and downstream processing is one of the main bottlenecks due to its high contribution to production cost. In that regard, process intensification of separation technology is still needed. Particularly, a novel liquid membrane in Taylor flow (LMTF) has demonstrated to intensify organic acid separation performance and potentially facilitate economic bioprocesses viability (Fontalvo and Pérez-Ávila, 2019). However, the current challenge is designing a separation mechanism for the immiscible phases once the extraction has been performed. In this work, a computational fluid dynamic (CFD) approach is used for fast prototype design followed by prototype construction and experimental evaluation. The device aims an immiscible droplets separation based on wettability in a LMTF used for the extraction of lactic acid. Simulation results indicate that a low contact angle for the hydrophilic ramification and a low division angle allowed the best separation performance, where complete phases separation was possible but experimentally some challenges limit the separation performance. CFD simulations have shown to be a powerful tool to assess geometric degrees of freedom which accelerate prototyping and reduce the initial experiments required. The combined LMTF system and drop separation device offers a continuous downstream alternative for bioprocesses further intensification.