Process for extracting resin and rubber from guayule plants
AssigneeVersalis S.P.A.
InventorsCecilia Querci, Maria Caldararo, Mirko Oliosi, Matteo Russo
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Abstract
The present invention relates to the sector of the industry for extracting and processing natural rubber, and other components, from plant material. In particular, the invention relates to a process for extracting resin and rubber from guayule and/or guayule type plants, which comprises harvesting, preserving and mechanically and chemically treating the parts of the plant, applicable both in the laboratory and on an industrial scale, characterized by significantly high quantity yields and high quality of the extracted products.
Claims24
Process for extracting resin and rubber from guayule plants, comprising:
- a. harvesting guayule plants;
- b. defoliating said plants;
- c. preserving the defoliated plants in environments at controlled temperature and relative humidity, for a time between 7 and 21 days, so that the residual moisture contained in the plant is maintained in the range of 30-45%;
- d. grinding said defoliated plants up to obtain a plant material comprising plant fragments with average sizes between 0.5 and 10 mm;
- e. dispersing said plant material in a polar solvent system, comprising at least one polar organic solvent and a stabilizer system, to obtain a suspension;
- f. subjecting the obtained suspension from step “e” to filtration/pressing to separate a first miscella comprising said resin from a first bagasse;
- g. removing the at least one polar organic solvent from said first miscella to obtain the concentrated resin;
- h. removing the at least one polar organic solvent from the first bagasse obtained in step “f”;
- i. dispersing said first desolventized bagasse obtained in step “h” in an apolar solvent system, comprising at least one apolar organic solvent and a stabilizer system, to obtain a suspension;
- j. subjecting said suspension obtained in step “i” to filtration/pressing to separate a second miscella comprising said rubber from a second bagasse;
- k. removing the at least one apolar organic solvent from said second miscella to obtain rubber in the solid state;
- l. removing the at least one apolar organic solvent from the second bagasse obtained in step “j”.
Process for extracting resin and rubber from guayule plants, comprising:
- a. harvesting guayule plants;
- b. preserving said plants in environments at controlled temperature and relative humidity, for a time between 7 and 21 days, so that the residual moisture contained in the plant is maintained in the range of 30-45%;
- c. defoliating said plants;
- d. grinding said defoliated plants up to obtain a plant material comprising plant fragments with average sizes between 0.5 and 10 mm;
- e. dispersing said plant material in a polar solvent system, comprising at least one polar organic solvent and a stabilizer system, to obtain a suspension;
- f. subjecting the obtained suspension from step “e” to filtration/pressing to separate a first miscella comprising said resin from a first bagasse;
- g. removing the at least one polar organic solvent from said first miscella to obtain the concentrated resin;
- h. removing the at least one polar organic solvent from the first bagasse obtained in step “f”;
- i. dispersing said first desolventized bagasse obtained in step “h” in an apolar solvent system, comprising at least one apolar organic solvent and a stabilizer system, to obtain a suspension;
- j. subjecting said suspension obtained in step “i” to filtration/pressing to separate a second miscella comprising said rubber from a second bagasse;
- k. removing the at least one apolar organic solvent from said second miscella to obtain rubber in the solid state;
- l. removing the at least one apolar organic solvent from the second bagasse obtained in step “j”.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.