Effect of Conductivity Control on the Separation of Whey Proteins by Bipolar Membrane Electroacidification

Since the limiting factor of the bipolar membrane electroacidification (BMEA) process at 20% WPI (whey protein isolate) was hypothesized to be the lack of mobile ion inherent to the protein solution at pH 5.0, the aim of the present work is to study the effect of the conductivity control on the precipitation behavior of whey protein. BMEA performances were evaluated by measuring electrodialytic parameters, protein kinetic precipitation, molecular profiles, and isolate chemical composition and purity. The highest protein precipitation with 10% WPI solution was obtained at pH 4.6 and at a conductivity level of 200 μS/cm maintained with many 0.4-mL additions of 1.0 M KCl (200 μS[+]), with a 46% precipitation of the total protein, β-lg composing the main part of the precipitated protein. With a 20% WPI solution, it was possible to reach pH 4.65 with conductivity control at 350 μS/cm. However, the 27% protein precipitation was still low. The changes in viscosity as pH decreases observed at 20% WPI would decreased the final precipitation rate of β-lg, since the viscosity of the 20% WPI dispersion was very different. Keywords: Electrochemical acidification; whey protein; fractionation; conductivity