A new approach for separation and recovery of betaine from beet molasses based on cloud point extraction technique.

The aim of this work was to explore the possibility of the application of cloud point extraction (CPE) method in micelle media to recovery betaine from beet molasses. Response surface method was employed to assess the effects of surfactant concentration, molasses concentration, incubation time, pH, electrolyte concentration, mixing time, and surfactant type on efficiency of betaine recovery from beet molasses. Also, a mathematical model was developed to predict the effect of each variable and their interactions on the efficiency of betaine recovery. The model showed that best surfactant was Triton X-114 and under the optimum conditions, betaine recovery from beet molasses was achieved up to 80% when three CPE steps with total of 1.5% (w/v) of surfactant were used. Subsequently, betaine was recovered nearly 100% from surfactant rich phase after adjusting pH at 2.5 and re-incubation at 40 °C. The results showed that the proposed method is suitable for extraction of betaine from beet molasses.