Process for treating amino acid solution

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF FREE AMINO ACID BY ELECTRODIALYSIS FROM AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION CONTAINING A MIXTURE OF A SALT OF SAID AMINO ACID WITH A MINERAL ACID SALT, WHEREIN A POTENTIAL DIFFERENCE IS MAINTAINED BETWEEN AN ANODE AND A CATHODE ACROSS A SERIES OF AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS OF IONIZABLE COMPOUNDS CONTAINED IN COMPARTMENTS SEPARATED ALTERNATELY BY ION-PERMSELECTIVE ANIONIC AND CATIONIC ZONES, WHICH PROCESS COMPRISES (A) INTRODUCING AQUEOUS SOLUTION OF (1) AN AMINO ACID SALT, THE ANION OF WHICH IS THE AMINO ACID, AND THE CATION OF WHICH IS A MEMBER SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF IONS OF AN ALKALI METAL AND AN ALKALINE EARTH METAL, AND (2) AN ELECTROLYTE SALT, THE ANION OF WHICH IS A STRONG ACID ANION INTO A CENTRAL COMPARTMENT; (B) INTORDUCING AQUEOUS SALT SOLUTION OF NEUTRAL PH INTO THE COMPARTMENTS ADJACENT THE CENTRAL COMPARTMENT AND POSITIONED TOWARD SAID ANODE AND SAID CATHODE, RESPECTIVELY; (C) INTRODUCING AN AQUEOUS HYDROGEN ION DONOR SOLUTION INTO THE COMPARTMENT CONTAINING SAID ANODE; AND AN AQUEOUS HYDROXYL ION DONOR SOLUTION INTO THE COMPARTMENT CONTAINING SAID CATHODE; (D) FILLING THE ZONES SEPARATING SAID CENTRAL COMPARTMENT FROM SAID COMPARTMENTS ADJACENT THERETO ON THE ANODE AND ON THE CATHODE SIDE WITH ANIONIC AND CATIONIC PERMSELECTIVE POROUS ION-EXCHANGE RESIN MATERIAL, RESPECTIVELY, THE PORE SIZE OF WHICH MATERIAL IS ABOUT 5 TO 50 ANGSTROMS; AND