Abstract:

Crystallization of zinc lactate in the presence of malic acid as an impurity was investigated, and the effects of operating variables on the final solid product yield, purity, crystal structure and habit were studied. The results showed that the structure and habit of the impure crystals were hardly changed under different operating conditions, while their length-diameter ratios increased comparing with the pure zinc lactate crystals. Moreover, the solid purity decreased linearly with the increasing yield. However, the purity decreased significantly when substantial secondary nucleation occurred in crystallization.