279 research outputs found
Chemical, functional, and structural properties of spent coffee grounds and coffee silverskin
Spent coffee grounds (SCG) and coffee silverskin (CS) represent a great pollution hazard if discharged into the environment. Taking this fact into account, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the chemical composition, functional properties, and structural characteristics of these agro-industrial residues in order to identify the characteristics that allow their reutilization in industrial processes. According to the results, SCG and CS are both of lignocellulosic nature. Sugars polymerized to their cellulose and hemicellulose fractions correspond to 51.5 and 40.45 % w/w, respectively; however, the hemicellulose sugars and their composition significantly differ from one residue to another. SCG and CS particles differ in terms of morphology and crystallinity, but both materials have very low porosity and similar melting point. In terms of functional properties, SCG and CS present good water and oil holding capacities, emulsion activity and stability, and antioxidant potential, being therefore great candidates for use on food and pharmaceutical fields.The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Science and Technology Foundation of Portugal (FCT) through the grant SFRH/BD/80948/2011 and the Strategic Project PEst-OE/EQB/LA0023/2013. The authors also thank the Project "BioInd - Biotechnology and Bioengineering for improved Industrial and Agro-Food processes", REF. NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000028 co-funded by the Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON.2-O Novo Norte), QREN, FEDER. Thanks are also given to Prof. Jose J.M. Orfao, from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Universidade do Porto (Portugal), for his assistance with the porosity analyses
Fructooligosaccharide production by Penicillium expansum
Fructooligosaccharides (FOS) production
by Penicillium expansum was evaluated. In a first
stage, the best conditions for P. expansum growth and
sporulation were established with potato/dextrose/
agar being the most suitable medium at between 22
and 25°C, giving good growth and good sporulation.
The inocula from this medium were used for FOS
production using shake-flask cultures, and yielded
0.58 g FOS/g sucrose (3.25 g FOS/l.h), demonstrating
the potential of this strain for sucrose conversion
to FOS.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) - SFRH/BPD/38212/200
The effect of agitation speed, enzyme loading and substrate concentration on enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose from brewer’s spent grain
Brewer’s spent grain components (cellulose,
hemicellulose and lignin) were fractionated in a
two-step chemical pretreatment process using dilute
sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide solutions. The
cellulose pulp produced was hydrolyzed with a
cellulolytic complex, Celluclast 1.5 L, at 45 ºC to
convert the cellulose into glucose. Several conditions
were examined: agitation speed (100, 150 and
200 rpm), enzyme loading (5, 25 and 45 FPU/g
substrate), and substrate concentration (2, 5 and 8%
w/v), according to a 2 3 full factorial design aiming to
maximize the glucose yield. The obtained results
were interpreted by analysis of variance and response
surface methodology. The optimal conditions for
enzymatic hydrolysis of brewer’s spent grain were
identified as 100 rpm, 45 FPU/g and 2% w/v substrate.
Under these conditions, a glucose yield of
93.1% and a cellulose conversion (into glucose and
cellobiose) of 99.4% was achieved. The easiness of
glucose release from BSG makes this substrate a raw material with great potential to be used in bioconversion
processes.Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível
Superior (CAPES)Fundação de Amparo
à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo), Brazil. Novozymes ( FAPESP )Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento
Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq
Hydrogen peroxide bleaching of cellulose pulps obtained from brewer’s spent grain
Brewer’s spent grain (BSG) was evaluated
for bleached pulp production. Two cellulose pulps with
different chemical compositionswere produced by soda
pulping: one from the original raw material and the
other from material pretreated by dilute acid. Both of
them were bleached by a totally chlorine-free sequence
performed in three stages, using 5% hydrogen peroxide
in the two initial, and a 0.25 NNaOHsolution in the last one. Chemical composition, kappa number, viscosity, brightness and yield of bleached and unbleached pulps were evaluated. The high hemicellulose (28.4% w/w) and extractives (5.8% w/w) contents in original BSG affected the pulping and bleaching processes.However, soda pulping of acid pretreated BSG gave a celluloserich pulp (90.4% w/w) with low hemicellulose and
extractives contents (7.9% w/w and <3.4% w/w, respectively), which was easily bleached achieving a kappa number of 11.21, viscosity of 3.12 cp, brightness of 71.3%, cellulose content of 95.7% w/w, and residual lignin of 3.4% w/w. Alkaline and oxidative delignification of acid pretreated BSG was found as an attractive approach for producing high-purity, chlorine-free cellulose pulp.FAPESP (Fundação de Amparo
à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo), Brazil.CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento
Científico e Tecnológico).Capes
(Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível
Superior)
The influence of initial xylose concentration, agitation, and aeration on ethanol production by Pichia stipitis from rice straw hemicellulosic hydrolysate
Rice straw hemicellulosic hydrolysate was used as fermentation medium for ethanol production by Pichia stipitis NRRL Y-7124. Shaking bath experiments were initially performed aiming to establish the best initial xylose concentration to be used in this bioconversion process. In the sequence, assays were carried out under different agitation (100 to 200 rpm) and aeration (V flask/V medium ratio varying from 2.5 to 5.0) conditions, and the influence of these variables on the fermentative parameters values (ethanol yield factor, Y P/S; cell yield factor, Y X/S; and ethanol volumetric productivity, Q P) was investigated through a 22 full-factorial design. Initial xylose concentration of about 50 g/l was the most suitable for the development of this process, since the yeast was able to convert substrate in product with high efficiency. The factorial design assays showed a strong influence of both process variables in all the evaluated responses. The agitation and aeration increase caused a deviation in the yeast metabolism from ethanol to biomass production. The best results (Y P/S = 0.37 g/g and Q P = 0.39 g/l.h) were found when the lowest aeration (2.5 V flask/V medium ratio) and highest agitation (200 rpm) levels were employed. Under this condition, a process efficiency of 72.5% was achieved. These results demonstrated that the establishment of adequate conditions of aeration is of great relevance to improve the ethanol production from xylose by Pichia stipitis, using rice straw hemicellulosic hydrolysate as fermentation medium.The financial support from Fapesp (Brazil) is gratefully acknowledged
Production of fructooligosaccharides and b-fructofuranosidase by batch and repeated batch fermentation with immobilized cells of Penicillium expansum
The production of fructooligosaccharides
(FOS) and b-fructofuranosidase (FFase) by immobilized
cells of Penicillium expansum was evaluated. In an initial
stage, different low-cost materials including synthetic fiber,
polyurethane foam, stainless steel sponge, loofah sponge,
and cork oak were tested as carrier for the fungus immobilization.
Additionally, the influence of the inoculum age
(1 or 3 weeks) on cells immobilization, FOS and FFase
production was also verified. Synthetic fiber and polyurethane
foam were the best materials for P. expansum
immobilization (2.21 and 1.98 g/g carrier, respectively)
and FOS production (120.3 and 104.8 g/l), and gave also
high results of FFase activity (23.01 and 32.42 U/ml).
Then, the production of FOS and FFase by repeated batch
fermentation with P. expansum immobilized on synthetic
fiber was studied, aiming to improve the batch fermentation
results. The results obtained in this stage were very
promising with FOS yields of 87, 72, and 44 %, in the 3
initial cycles (60 h), respectively; the FFase activity was
constant throughout the process (6 cycles, 96 h). Repeated
batch fermentation with immobilized cells of P. expansum
was found as being a technology with great potential for
FOS and FFase production on industrial scaleThe financial support from FCT, the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (research grant SFRH/BPD/38212/2007) is gratefully acknowledged
Selection of the solvent and extraction conditions for maximum recovery of antioxidant phenolic compounds from coffee silverskin
The extraction of antioxidant phenolic compounds from coffee silverskin (CS) was studied. Firstly, the effect of different solvents (methanol, ethanol, acetone, and distilled water) on the production of antioxidant extracts was evaluated. All the extracts showed antioxidant activity (FRAP and DPPH assays), but those obtained with methanol and ethanol had significantly higher (p < 0.05) DPPH inhibition than the remaining ones. Due to the lower toxicity, ethanol was selected as extraction solvent, and further experiments were performed in order to define the solvent concentration, solvent/solid ratio, and time to maximize the extraction results. The best condition to produce an extract with high content of phenolic compounds (13 mg gallic acid equivalents/g CS) and antioxidant activity [DPPH = 18.24 μmol Trolox equivalents/g CS and FRAP = 0.83 mmol Fe(II)/g CS] was achieved when using 60 % ethanol in a ratio of 35 ml/g CS, during 30 min at 60–65 °C.This work was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). The authors gratefully acknowledge Teresa Conde, student of Biological Engineering, for the help and interest in this work
An overview of the recent developments on fructooligosaccharide production and applications
Over the past years, many researchers have suggested
that deficiencies in the diet can lead to disease states
and that some diseases can be avoided through an adequate
intake of relevant dietary components. Recently, a great interest
in dietary modulation of the human gut has been registered.
Prebiotics, such as fructooligosaccharides (FOS), play a key
role in the improvement of gut microbiota balance and in
individual health. FOS are generally used as components of
functional foods, are generally regarded as safe (generally
recognized as safe status—from the Food and Drug Administration,
USA), and worth about 150€ per kilogram. Due to
their nutrition- and health-relevant properties, such as moderate
sweetness, low carcinogenicity, low calorimetric value,
and low glycemic index, FOS have been increasingly used
by the food industry. Conventionally, FOS are produced
through a two-stage process that requires an enzyme production
and purification step in order to proceed with the chemical
reaction itself. Several studies have been conducted on the
production of FOS, aiming its optimization toward the development
of more efficient production processes and their potential
as food ingredients. The improvement of FOS yield and
productivity can be achieved by the use of different fermentative
methods and different microbial sources of FOS producing
enzymes and the optimization of nutritional and
culture parameter; therefore, this review focuses on the latest
progresses in FOS research such as its production, functional
properties, and market data.Agencia de Inovacao (AdI)-Project BIOLIFE reference PRIME 03/347. Ana Dominguez acknowledges Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia, Portugal, for her PhD grant reference SFRH/BD/23083/2005
Life cycle assessment of bacterial cellulose production
Purpose
Bacterial cellulose (BC), obtained by fermentation, is an innovative and promising material with a broad spectrum of potential applications. Despite the increasing efforts towards its industrialization, a deeper understanding of the environmental impact related to the BC production process is still required. This work aimed at quantifying the environmental, health, and resource depletion impacts related to a production of BC.
Methods
An attributional life cycle assessment (LCA) was applied to a process design of production of BC, by static culture, following a cradle-to-gate approach. The LCA was modeled with GaBi Pro Software using the ReCiPe 2016 (H) methodology with environmental impact indicators at midpoint level. The functional unit was defined as 1 kg of BC (dry mass), in 138.8 kg of water.
Results
From the total used resources (38.9 ton/kg of BC), water is the main one (36.1 ton/kg of BC), most of which (98%) is returned to fresh waters after treatment. The production of raw materials consumed 17.8 ton of water/kg of BC, 13.8 ton/kg of BC of which was for the production of carton packaging, culture medium raw materials, and sodium hydroxide (for the washing of BC). The remaining consumed water was mainly for the fermentation (3.9 ton/kg) and downstream process (7.7 ton/kg). From the identified potential environmental impacts, the production of raw materials had the highest impact, mainly on Climate change, Fossil depletion, Human toxicity, non-cancer, and Terrestrial toxicity. The sodium dihydrogen phosphate production, used in the culture medium, showed the highest environmental impacts in Human toxicity, non-cancer and Terrestrial ecotoxicity, followed by corn syrup and carton production. The static culture fermentation and downstream process showed impact in Climate change and Fossil depletion.
Conclusions
Per se, the BC production process had a small contribution to the consumption of resources and environmental impact of the BC global life cycle.This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation
for Science and Technology (FCT) within the scope of the strate gic funding of UIDB/04469/2020 and UIDB/00511/2020 units and
MultiBiorefinery project (SAICTPAC/0040/2015-POCI-01-0145-
FEDER-016403). This study was also supported by The Navigator
Company through the I&D no. 21874, “Inpactus-–Produtos e Tecno logias Inovadores a partir do Eucalipto”, funded through the European
Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Programa Operacional
Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI) is greatly acknowl edged. The work by Belmira Neto was fnancially supported by Base
Funding—UIDB/00511/2020 of the Laboratory for Process Engineer ing, Environment, Biotechnology and Energy—LEPABE—funded by
national funds through the FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
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