BACKGROUNDEnzymatic synthesis and chromatographic purification of ethyl -D-glucopyranoside was investigated. Ethyl -D-glucopyranoside was produced from glucose and ethanol with -glucosidase enzyme (EC 3.2.1.21). Cation exchange resins in Ca2+ and Na+ forms were used for the purification of ethyl--D-glucopyranoside. RESULTSGreater than 60% conversion was obtained in the synthesis. The reaction which follows the double displacement mechanism was successfully modelled with a simple kinetic model. Good separation of ethyl--D-glucopyranoside and glucose was obtained with weak acid cation exchange resins in Na+ form. 5.5 wt% crosslinked resin performed slightly better than 8 wt% crosslinked resin. The separation is based on hydrophobic interactions. Presence of ethanol disturbs the separation and should be removed before the chromatographic step. Scale-up of the purification step (bed volume: 0.11 L to 1.9 L) was successfully carried out to produce ethyl--D-glucopyranoside with 99% purity. Performance of the purification process was evaluated with numerical simulations. With respect to ethyl--D-glucopyranoside, the separation performance was found to go through a shallow maximum with increasing column loading and flow rate. CONCLUSIONAn efficient chromatographic purification method was developed for enzymatically produced ethyl--D-glucopyranoside. This method could be utilized also in the purification of other enzymatically produced glucopyranosides. (c) 2015 Society of Chemical Industry