Lipase‐catalyzed Synthesis of Sugar Ester in Mixed Biphasic System of Ionic Liquids and Supercritical Carbon Dioxide.

Lipase‐catalyzed synthesis of lauroyl glucose ester was continuously performed in a biphasic system consisting of supercritical CO2 and an ionic liquid (IL). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy are employed to identify the product lauroyl glucose ester. The effects of reaction pressure, temperature, substrate flow rate, the amount of enzyme, and the amount of IL on the glucose conversion rate are investigated. The highest glucose conversion of up to 95.5% could be achieved at the optimal condition, which is higher than that in the pure IL. The enzyme activity in the biphasic system was 18.19 μmol/g/min, which is much higher than that in the pure IL. The continuous reaction in the binary system could last for 10 h at high enzyme activity. The combination of supercritical CO2 and ILs could not only improve the reaction rate and yield, which are attributed to the fast mass transfer rate and enhanced enzyme activity and lifespan, but also make the product separation and enzyme/ILs recycling easier. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]