Optimization of the Adsorptive Dehydration of Ethanol –Water System

Abstract

This work has explored the use of enzyme modified corn starch for the dehydration of ethanol – water mixtures. The X - RD analysis revealed that the enzyme modified corn starch is amorphous in nature while the Scanning Electron Microscopy revealed that the enzyme modified corn starch particles are spherical and irregular in shape with the existence of pores in the starch molecule. Optimization and modelling of the process variables was carried out using the RSM (BBD) design of experiment. The optimum process variables obtained were 2.75mm, 61.69min, and 49.99^oC for particle size, time, and temperature respectively at an initial concentration of 90wt% with predicted value of 95.4065wt%. The model was validated at the optimum conditions which gave an experimental value of 95.00wt% ethanol concentration. The experimentally result obtained is 99.574% close to the result obtained from the predicted optimum value.

Keywords: Response surface methodology, Enzyme Modified Corn starch, X – RD, SEM, Optimization, Ethanol – water mixtures, Box – Behnken design.