Single cell protein process and product

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12484599-B2
Application number	US-202217672493-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 15, 2022
Priority date	Jun 19, 2017
Publication date	Dec 2, 2025
Grant date	Dec 2, 2025

Abstract

This disclosure describes methods to separate solids from liquids in a production facility. A process separates components in the process stream by applying non-condensable media to create density differences and then using a mechanical device to separate the solids from the liquids based on the density difference. The process produces the liquids and solids, which may be further processed to create valuable animal feed products.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method comprising:
separating with a separation device a fractionated stillage stream to provide a heavy phase with suspended solids stream and a light emulsion phase stream; fermenting with a fermentation vessel at least a portion of the heavy phase with suspended solids stream and an organism to provide a fermentation mixture comprising at least the portion of the heavy phase with suspended solids stream and the organism; wherein the fermenting converts a carbon source of the fermentation mixture to generate a feed product; and drying the feed product to provide a dried feed product, wherein the dried feed product has an amino acid content of lysine of from about 1% to about 9% dry basis.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the fractionated stillage stream is from about 3% to about 14% by weight of total solids.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the organism comprises at least one of Candida utilis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pichia stipitis, Pichia pastoris, Escherichia coli, Kluyveromyces marxianus , Corynobacterium lilim, and Corynobacterium glutamicum.

4 . A method comprising:
separating with a separation device a fractionated stillage stream to provide a heavy phase with suspended solids stream and a light emulsion phase stream; fermenting with a fermentation vessel at least a portion of the heavy phase with suspended solids stream and an organism to provide a fermentation mixture comprising at least the portion of the heavy phase with suspended solids stream and the organism; wherein the fermenting converts a carbon source of the fermentation mixture to generate a feed product, and wherein a concentration of the organism in the fermentation mixture is from about 1% to about 30% by volume.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the fermentation mixture further comprises a media preparation for the organism, wherein the media preparation comprises nitrogen sources, urea, ammonia, ammonia salts, a sterilizer, or a portion of the fractionated stillage stream.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the separation device comprises at least one of a sedicanter centrifuge, a decanter centrifuge, a disk stack centrifuge, a cyclone, a hydrocyclone, and a settling tank.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the feed product comprises a protein content of from about 30% to about 50% dry basis.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the dried feed product comprises an amino acid content of methionine of from about 0.21% to about 0.46% dry basis.

9 . A method for separating components in a fractionated stillage stream, the method comprising:
separating with a first separation device the fractionated stillage stream to provide a heavy phase with suspended solids stream and a light emulsion phase stream; fermenting with a fermentation vessel at least a portion of the heavy phase with suspended solids stream and an organism to provide a fermentation mixture comprising at least the portion of the heavy phase with suspended solids stream and the organism; wherein the fermenting converts a carbon source of the fermentation mixture to a biomass; and separating with a second separation device the fermentation mixture to provide a separated liquids stream and a separated solids stream that includes at least a portion of the biomass, wherein the separated solids stream forms at least a part of a feed product.

10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the fractionated stillage stream has about 3% to about 14% by weight of total solids.

11 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the fermentation mixture further comprises a media preparation for the organism, wherein the media preparation comprises nitrogen sources, urea, ammonia, ammonia salts, a sterilizer, or a portion of the fractionated stillage stream.

12 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the organism comprises at least one of Candida utilis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pichia stipitis, Pichia pastoris, Escherichia coli, Kluyveromyces marxianus , Corynobacterium lilim, and Corynobacterium glutamicum.

13 . The method of claim 9 , wherein a concentration of the organism in the fermentation mixture is from about 1% to about 30% by volume.

14 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the second separation device comprises at least one of a sedicanter centrifuge, a decanter centrifuge, a disk stack centrifuge, a cyclone, a hydrocyclone, and a settling tank.

15 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the feed product comprises a protein content of from about 30% to about 50% dry basis.

16 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the feed product comprises an amino acid content of methionine of from about 0.21% to about 0.46% dry basis.

17 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the feed product comprises an amino acid content of lysine of from about 1% to about 9% dry basis.

18 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising drying the feed product to provide a dried feed product.

Assignees

• Icm Inc

Inventors

• Gallop Charles C
• Gerken Christopher Riley William
• Javers Jeremy Edward
• Spooner Jesse
• Mass Ryan A

Classifications

• B01D2311/2676

  Centrifugal separation · CPC title

• B01D2311/2646

  Decantation · CPC title

• B01D61/14

  Ultrafiltration; Microfiltration · CPC title

• Y02P60/87

  Re-use of by-products of food processing for fodder production · CPC title

• B01D21/26

  Separation of sediment aided by centrifugal force {or centripetal force}(centrifuges B04B; cyclones B04C) · CPC title