Purification of lactic acid from fermentation broth by spherical anion exchange polymer

Abstract Lactic acid, as a versatile chemical, was purified from fermentation broth by solid phase extraction with a spherical porous poly(4‐vinylpyridine). Adsorption isotherm of lactic acid on poly(4‐vinylpyridine) was first investigated with model solutions. The factors which affect the performance of separation and purification were then investigated. The obtained results indicate that the sorbent had a high adsorption capability of lactic acid, of which the maximum adsorbed lactic acid was 180.0 mg g−1. Under the optimal condition the lactic acid was purified from fermentation broth by solid phase extraction with the purity of 88% and recovery yield of 95%. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011