Collagen proteins in electrorefining: Rate constants for glue hydrolysis and effects of molar mass on glue activity

Animal glue (collagen proteins) degradation was studied in water and in a simulated copper electrolyte (150 g/L H2SO4, 46 g/L Cu2+ as CuSO4) by size-exclusion chromatography. The rate of degradation was relatively slow in pure aqueous solutions, and depending on the temperature and glue concentration, some association to larger molar mass species was observed. For simulated electrolyte in a temperature range of 42 °C to 70 °C and a glue concentration range of 100 to 3000 mg/L, the degradation rate constant was described with the following relation:k′ = 1.5· 107exp (-9951/T), min-1The degradation rate was zero order with respect to initial concentration of the protein and first order with respect to acid concentration. The results show that glue degradation under normal tankhouse operation should be rapid, with degradation to number-average molar mass (Mn) < 10,000 units occurring in about 40 to 80 minutes depending on the mass transfer rate (or mixing) of the electrolyte solution. Samples of glue from three different sources showed almost no difference in degradation rates. Results calculated from the rate equation for glue degradation have been correlated with cathode polarization data from the literature, and the results suggest that critical glueMn below which the glue loses most of its activity is 3700.