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Supercritical fluid processing technologies
In the field of supercritical extraction technologies we are recognised as the leading research organisation in the southern hemisphere, with strong links to a number of commercial supercritical extraction companies.
Polylactide bioscaffold.
Our experience ranges from laboratory scale research through to pilot-scale extractions and development of full-scale production facilities. We continue to make advances into novel extraction technologies as well as synthetic processes under supercritical conditions.
Supercritical extraction is the logical choice for producing high value, solvent-residue free extracts for use in the pharmaceutical, cosmeceutical, nutraceutical and food ingredient industries. Supercritical fluids can also be used as a versatile processing medium for the formation of customised particles and composite materials, with surface properties customised to meet the needs of highly specific applications.
These technologies have uses in many areas of high performance materials as well as in pharmaceutical and human health applications.
Our current research in this area includes:
Novel extraction and fractionation technologies
IRL is conducting a FRST[?]-funded research programme aimed at developing and demonstrating a suite of lipid extraction, fractionation and modification technologies based around the use of supercritical fluids to produce high value lipid products. Read more >>
Other compressed gas solvents
Use of other compressed gas solvents, such as propane or dimethyl ether, enables extraction of a wider range of compounds than is possible using CO2, or even CO2 with liquid co-solvents. These solvents retain many of the benefits of processing with CO2, including low temperature processing to give ‘nature like’ oil fractions with no chemical artefacts, and a high vapour pressure that leads to low or non-existent solvent residues. The solvent phase can also be efficiently and almost completely recycled. IRL has a number of proprietary processes for effective extraction of polar lipid compounds and/or water, from wet and dry feed materials.