A green method for separation of betaine from beet molasses based on cloud point extraction methodology using polyethylene glycol as a food grade surfactant

In this study, an experimentally efficient and green-scalable procedure was designed using a sustainable surfactant to extract betaine from the beet waste (molasses) of sugar industry. This procedure was extended based upon the cloud point extraction (CPE) technique. An optimization framework was developed using the response surface methodology (RSM) to achieve an optimal value for the factors affecting the extraction efficiency of the experimental procedure. The main operational factors were surfactant concentrations, electrolyte concentration, pH, and the incubation temperature. Under the measured and optimal conditions, an extraction efficiency of as high as 88% was obtained for the betaine recovery. The polyethylene glycol (PEG) was used as a food grade surfactant that is a renewable substance approved by the U.S. food and drug administration (FDA) used in the food and drink industry. In the last step, the extracted betaine was freeze-dried at -56 °C for 16 h under 0.5 bar ambient pressure. The results revealed that, the final betaine powder product can be directly used as a supplement in livestock feed supply since PEG is an edible surfactant. Thus, the proposed experimental procedure for betaine extraction from molasses is regarded as a scalable, cost-effective, sustainable and eco-friendly approach.