Effect of Invertase on a Batch Foam Fractionation of Bromelain

The method of foam fractionation can be applied to enrich proteins from a dilute protein solution if the proteins are hydrophobic and foam. If a protein, such as invertase, is hydrophilic, a dilute solution containing this protein may not foam. In that case, a batch foam fractionation process may not be appropriate for recovering a concentrated solution of that protein. In this paper, various concentrations of invertase were added to a dilute solution containing bromelain (a hydrophobic protein), in order to determine how the presence of a hydrophilic protein can affect the recovery of the desired hydrophobic protein. The effect of invertase on bromelain recovery was studied here at an initial bulk solution pH of 5 and an air superficial velocity of 4.6 cm/s.