Bipolar Membrane Process for Tartaric Acid Production

【Project Overview】

Tartaric acid is widely used as a food additive, pharmaceutical intermediate, and industrial chelating agent in the food, pharmaceutical, and chemical sectors. Traditional tartaric acid production primarily employs the "Calcium Process," which uses sodium tartrate as a raw material and involves steps like calcium salt precipitation and acidolysis. However, this method suffers from high energy consumption, significant solid waste generation, and low sodium ion conversion rates.

Create's integrated "Enzymatic Preparation of Sodium Tartrate + Bipolar Membrane Desalination" process delivers a full-process solution encompassing "Ceramic Membrane + Spiral Ultrafiltration Membrane + Chelating Resin + Precision Filter + Bipolar Membrane." This system achieves outstanding performance indicators, including a sodium ion conversion rate of >95% and an annual membrane replacement rate of only 15%. Furthermore, the Phase I project has been operating stably for a full two years, providing key technological support for the green transformation of the tartaric acid industry.

【Project Highlights】

• Process Innovation: Enzymatic Route Pioneers Green Manufacturing
  This project completely eliminates the massive generation of calcium sulfate waste slag inherent in the traditional Calcium Process, solving the solid waste pollution problem at its source. Through efficient enzymatic catalysis combined with precise multi-stage membrane separation and ion-exchange technology, it achieves high product purity and a cleaner production process.
• Technological Core: Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis Enables Highly Efficient Conversion
  The bipolar membrane system is the core technical unit of this project, demonstrating exceptional operational performance: Efficient Sodium Removal: Using a 7-11% sodium tartrate solution as feed, the system stably reduces the sodium ion concentration in the product water to below 2000 ppm. Leading Conversion Rate: The sodium ion conversion rate is consistently maintained above 95%, greatly enhancing raw material utilization and product economics.
• Long-Term Stable Operation Validates Exceptional Reliability
  The Phase I project has achieved a full two years of continuous, stable operation, fully validating its outstanding engineering reliability and low maintenance costs: Low Maintenance Cost: During the first scheduled maintenance after two years of operation, focused primarily on cation exchange membrane replacement, the overall membrane replacement rate was below 17% (annualized rate ~8.5%), far lower than conventional industry levels.