Rhamnolipid
Rhamnolipids are glycolipid biosurfactants in which one or two rhamnose sugar units are glycosidically linked to a chain of one or two beta-hydroxy fatty acids, usually of ten carbon atoms. They are produced naturally by bacteria, most characteristically by Pseudomonas aeruginosa and by non-pathogenic Pseudomonas and Burkholderia species used for manufacture, and commercial material is a mixture of mono-rhamnolipid and di-rhamnolipid congeners rather than a single molecule.
The sugar head group is hydrophilic and the hydroxy fatty acid tail lipophilic, so the molecules are strongly surface active. They reduce the surface tension of water to around 25 to 30 millinewtons per metre at very low concentration, form micelles at a low critical micelle concentration, emulsify hydrocarbons and vegetable oils, and disrupt lipid membranes, which gives them antimicrobial and antifungal activity against some organisms.
Supply is as an amber to brown aqueous solution at a few percent to around 30 percent active, or as a spray dried tan powder. The material is anionic at neutral pH, water soluble above about pH 5, and precipitates under acidic conditions, which limits its use in low pH systems. It is stable to moderate heat and to salt, and it biodegrades readily.
We source bulk Rhamnolipid from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturer is in Zhejiang. A smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
Please send the grade you need, the volume and your destination port, and we will come back with a solution and a price.
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- Function
- Emulsifier
Specifications
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Amber to brown liquid or tan powder |
| Assay (total rhamnolipids) | ≥ 25.0% (liquid concentrate) |
| Identification | Congener profile conforms by HPLC-MS |
| Mono to di-rhamnolipid ratio | Within declared range |
| Surface tension at 0.1% in water | ≤ 32 mN/m |
| pH (1% solution) | 6.0 - 8.0 |
| Loss on drying (powder grade) | ≤ 6.0% |
| Residual sugars | ≤ 2.0% |
| Heavy metals (as Pb) | ≤ 10 mg/kg |
| Lead | ≤ 1 mg/kg |
| Arsenic | ≤ 1 mg/kg |
| Total plate count | ≤ 1,000 cfu/g |
| Yeast and mould | ≤ 100 cfu/g |
| Production organism | Absent in 10 g |
| Salmonella | Absent in 25 g |
Common Markets Grades
Rhamnolipids are traded on active content and congener profile. Fermentation broth concentrates at 5 to 20 percent active are used where a crude surfactant is acceptable, purified solutions at 25 to 30 percent active serve formulation work, and powders at 80 percent and above, obtained by solvent extraction and drying, are used where a dry surfactant is needed. The ratio of mono to di-rhamnolipid is specified because it controls foaming, emulsification and antimicrobial behaviour.
The other significant distinction is the production organism, since material from non-pathogenic strains is what supports use in personal care, agriculture and food contact applications. Technical grades for cleaning, oilfield and crop protection duty carry looser colour, residual sugar and endotoxin limits than the grades offered for cosmetic or food related use. There is no crystalline or coated form in commercial trade.
Applications
- Household and industrial cleaning formulations, where the biosurfactant replaces petrochemical surfactants and biodegrades quickly
- Personal care products such as shampoos and body washes, where it foams and solubilises oils at mild pH
- Crop protection adjuvants, where it wets leaf surfaces and improves the spread of spray solutions
- Agricultural biocontrol, where it disrupts the membranes of some plant pathogenic fungi and oomycetes
- Soil and groundwater remediation, where it mobilises hydrocarbons and heavy metals for recovery
- Enhanced oil recovery and tank cleaning, where it lowers interfacial tension between oil and brine
- Emulsification of oils in industrial and technical formulations, where a low dose anionic surfactant is required
- Antimicrobial and biofilm control preparations, where it destabilises the membranes and matrices of surface attached organisms
China Manufacturers of Rhamnolipid
Top Rhamnolipid manufacturers in China.
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
Regulatory Status
Rhamnolipids are not an authorised food additive with an E number in the European Union, and a food use would require authorisation under the novel food framework or as an additive before it could be placed on the market. Their established regulated uses in Europe are as surfactants in detergents, cosmetics and plant protection adjuvants, each under its own sectoral legislation.
In the United States the Environmental Protection Agency has reviewed rhamnolipid preparations for use in registered pesticide products, and preparations from defined non-pathogenic production strains have been submitted to the Food and Drug Administration through the voluntary generally recognised as safe notification route for limited food related uses. Anyone considering a food application should confirm the current status of the specific preparation and production organism, because clearance is tied to both. Codex and JECFA have not published specifications for rhamnolipids as a food additive.
Manufacturing Process
Rhamnolipids are made by aerobic submerged fermentation. A non-pathogenic production strain is grown on a carbon source that favours the biosynthetic pathway, typically a vegetable oil, glycerol or a sugar, with a limiting nitrogen supply since rhamnolipid formation is triggered by nitrogen limitation. The fermenter is run for several days with controlled aeration, temperature and pH, and heavy foaming has to be managed mechanically or with antifoam because the product itself is a surfactant.
Downstream, the broth is heat treated and the cells are removed by centrifugation or membrane filtration. The rhamnolipid is then recovered from the clarified broth, usually by acid precipitation at around pH 2 followed by separation of the solid, or by solvent extraction, or by ultrafiltration where the micelles are retained by the membrane. The crude concentrate is washed, neutralised and decolourised with carbon or resin, then either standardised as a liquid concentrate or spray dried to powder. Congener profile, active content and residual sugar are verified for each batch.
