Immobilization of pectinase from Aspergillus aculeatus in alginate beads and clarification of apple and umbu juices in a packed bed reactor

Abstract Pectinase from Aspergillus aculeatus was immobilized in alginate beads and a continuous process for clarifying juice in a packed bed reactor was undertaken. Concentrations of sodium alginate and calcium chloride were assayed during the immobilization procedure, as a result of which an optimized immobilization yield of 56.71% was found in 1.75% sodium alginate and 0.05 M CaCl 2 in Central Composite Rotational Design. Immobilized pectinase showed good operational stability retaining more than 80% of its initial activity after the third cycle of reutilization. Immobilized pectinase was used in a reactor. The best condition of the reactor operation was obtained at a flow rate of 10 mL/min and a recirculation time of 10 min. Apple and umbu juices were clarified. Clarification rates of 97.22 and 45.52% and a reduction of viscosity of 20.80 and 26.0%, respectively, were obtained. These results showed that a continuous process in packed bed reactor is an efficient alternative for applications in fruit juice industries.