# US 2021/0340487 A1 · Method for cooling biomass > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2021/0340487 A1 - Document ID: US20210340487A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 17/286,561 - Filed: 2019-11-19 - Published: 2021-11-04 - Earliest claimed: 2018-11-23 - Assignees: Valmet Corporation - Applicants: Valmet AB - Inventors: Patrik Pettersson; Johan Carlsson - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20210340487A1 ## CPC - C12M 45/20: {Heating; Cooling (heating or cooling apparatus for laboratory uses B01L7/00)} - C12P 1/00: Preparation of compounds or compositions, not provided for in groups C12P3/00 - C12P39/00, by using microorganisms or enzymes - C12M 45/03: {by control of the humidity or content of liquids; Drying} - C12M 45/09: {by enzymatic treatment} - C12P 19/02: Monosaccharides (2-ketogulonic acid C12P7/60) - C12P 19/04: Polysaccharides, i.e. compounds containing more than five saccharide radicals attached to each other by glycosidic bonds - C12M: APPARATUS FOR ENZYMOLOGY OR MICROBIOLOGY; {APPARATUS FOR CULTURING MICROORGANISMS FOR PRODUCING BIOMASS, FOR GROWING CELLS OR FOR OBTAINING FERMENTATION OR METABOLIC PRODUCTS, i.e. BIOREACTORS OR FERMENTERS} - C12P: FERMENTATION OR ENZYME-USING PROCESSES TO SYNTHESISE A DESIRED CHEMICAL COMPOUND OR COMPOSITION OR TO SEPARATE OPTICAL ISOMERS FROM A RACEMIC MIXTURE {(brewing of beer C12C; producing vinegar C12J; producing specific peptides or proteins C07K; producing enzymes C12N9/00; DNA or RNA concerning genetic engineering, vectors, e.g. plasmids, or their isolation, preparation or purification C12N15/00; measuring or testing processes involving enzymes or microorganisms C12Q; measuring or testing processes involving nucleic acid amplification reactions C12Q1/6844; fermentation processes to form a food composition, A21 or A23; compounds in general, see the relevant compound class, e.g. C01, C07)} ## Abstract The present invention relates to an improved method and device for treating biomass in which thermally treated biomass is discharged from a pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit and dewatered before it is cooled with cold liquid. The cooled slurry of biomass is then enzymatically treated. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for treating biomass comprising: (a) feeding biomass to a pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit; (b) thermally treating the biomass in the pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit; (c) discharging the thermally treated biomass from the pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit to produce a discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass; (d) dewatering the discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass; (e) feeding the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass into a cooling unit; (f) cooling the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass by mixing the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass with a liquid having a lower temperature than the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass in the cooling unit; and (g) treating the cooled aqueous slurry of biomass with an enzyme. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass is dewatered in a dewatering unit to separate a dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass and a filtrate of a hot aqueous solution. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method according to claim 2, wherein at least part of the filtrate of a hot aqueous solution is fed into a heat exchanger unit to produce a filtrate of a cold aqueous solution. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The method according to claim 3, wherein at least part of the filtrate of a cold aqueous solution is fed into the cooling unit of step (f) to cool the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass. ### Claim 5 (depends on 2) The method according to claim 2, wherein a part of the filtrate of a hot aqueous solution is separated and fed into the pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the thermally treated biomass has a temperature of from 120° C. to 220° C. and is discharged from the pressurized pretreatment unit through steam explosion to produce a discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass having a weight amount of biomass of from 25 to 60 wt %. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The method according to claim 6, wherein the discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass is dewatered to a weight amount of biomass in the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass of from 30 to 60 wt %. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the thermally treated biomass has a temperature of from 50° C. to 140° C. and is discharged from the pressurized pretreatment unit through dilution discharge to produce a discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass having a weight amount of biomass of from 5 to 25 wt %. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method according to claim 8, wherein the discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass is dewatered to a weight amount of biomass in the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass of from 30 to 70 wt %. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the liquid for cooling the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass in the cooling unit in step (f) has a temperature of from 10° C. to 40° C. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass is cooled in the cooling unit in step (f) to a temperature of 40° C. to 80° C. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the cooled aqueous slurry of biomass in step (g) has a weight amount of biomass of from 15 to 25 wt %. ### Claim 13 A device for treating biomass comprising: a biomass feeding system; a pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit for thermally treating a biomass and for discharging a thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass; a dewatering unit for separating the discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass into a dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass and a filtrate of hot aqueous solution; a cooling unit; wherein: the biomass feeding system is adapted to feed the biomass to the pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit and to feed the discharged thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass from the pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit through the dewatering unit to the cooling unit, and the cooling unit comprises: at least one feeding port for the dewatered thermally treated slurry of biomass; at least one feeding port for a liquid having a lower temperature than the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass; means for mixing the dewatered thermally treated slurry of biomass and the liquid; and at least one feeding port for an enzyme for treating the cooled aqueous slurry of biomass downstream of the at least one feeding port for the dewatered thermally treated slurry of biomass and the at least one feeding port for a liquid having a lower temperature than the dewatered thermally treated aqueous slurry of biomass; and at least one discharge port for discharging the enzyme treated slurry of biomass from the cooling unit. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The device for treating biomass according to claim 13 further comprising a heat exchanger unit for cooling the filtrate of a hot aqueous solution to produce a filtrate of a cold aqueous solution. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The device for treating biomass according to claim 14 further comprising a filtrate feeding system adapted to feed the filtrate of a hot aqueous solution from the dewatering unit to the heat exchanger unit and optionally to the pressurized prehydrolysis reactor unit, and to feed the filtrate of cold aqueous solution from the heat exchanger unit to the cooling unit.