Journal of Bioscience and Bioengineering, Vol.98, No.4, 263-268, 2004
High butanol production by Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum N1-4 in fed-batch culture with pH-stat continuous butyric acid and glucose feeding method
A pH-stat fed-batch culture by feeding butyric acid and glucose has been studied in an acetonebutanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation using Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum N1-4. The specific butanol production rate increased from 0.10 (Y-butanol/g-cells/h with no feeding of butyric acid to 0.42 g-butanol/g-cells/h with 5.0g/l butyric acid. The pH value in broth decreases with butyric acid production during acidogenesis, and then butyric acid reutilization and butanol production result in a pH increase during solventogensis. The pH-stat fed-batch culture was performed to maintain a constant pH and butyric acid concentration in the culture broth. but feeding only butyric acid could not support butyric acid utilization and butanol production. Subsequently, when a mixture of butyric acid and glucose was fed butyric acid was utilized and butanol was produced. To investigate the effect of the feeding ratio of butyric acid to glucose (B/G ratio), several B/G ratio solutions were fed. The maximum butanol production wads 16 g/l and the residual glucose concentration in broth was very low at a B/G ratio of 1.4. Moreover. fields of butanol in relation to cell mass and glucose utilization were 54% and 72% higher in pH-stat fed-batch culture with butyric acid than that of conventional batch culture, respectively.
Keywords:acetone-butanol-ethanol fermentation;pH-stat fed-batch culture;high butanol production;B/G ratio;Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum N1-4