Biobutanol: the outlook of an academic and industrialist.

Abstract The gradual shift of transportation fuels from oil based fuels to the alternative fuel resources and worldwide demand for energy has been the impetus for research to produce alcohol biofuels from renewable resources. Current bioethanol and biodiesel can, however, not cover an increasing demand for biofuels. Hence, there is an extensive need for advanced biofuels with superior fuel properties. The present review is focused on the developments of biobutanol, which is regarded to be superior to bioethanol in terms of energy density and hygroscopicity. Although acetone-butanolethanol (ABE) fermentation is one of the oldest large-scale fermentation processes, butanol yield by anaerobic fermentation remains sub-optimal. For sustainable industrial scale butanol production, a number of obstacles need to be addressed including choice of feedstock, low product yield, product toxicity to production strain, multiple end-products and downstream processing of alcohol mixtures. Metabolic engineering provides a means for fermentation improvements. Different strategies are employed in the metabolic engineering of Clostridia that aim to enhance the solvent production, improve selectivity for butanol production, and increase the tolerance of Clostridia to solvents. The introduction and expression of a non-clostridial butanol producing pathway in E. coli is most promising strategy for butanol biosynthesis. Several rigorous kinetic and physiological models for fermentation have been formulated, which form useful tool for optimization of the process. Due to the lower butanol titers in the fermentation broth, simultaneous fermentation and product removal techniques have been developed to improve production economics. With the use of new strains, inexpensive substrates, and superior reactor designs, economic ABE fermentation may further attract an attention of researchers all over the world. The present review is attempting to provide an overall outlook on discoveries and strategies that are being developed for commercial n-butanol production

Proizvodnja gelan gume fermentacijom, njezino izdvajanje, pročišćavanje i primjena

The microbial exopolysaccharides are water-soluble polymers secreted by microorganisms during fermentation. The biopolymer gellan gum is a relatively recent addition to the family of microbial polysaccharides that is gaining much importance in food, pharmaceutical and chemical industries due to its novel properties. It is commercially produced by C. P. Kelco in Japan and the USA. Further research and development in biopolymer technology is expected to expand its use. This article presents a critical review of the available information on the gellan gum synthesized by Sphingomonas paucimobilis with special emphasis on its fermentative production and downstream processing. Rheological behaviour of fermentation broth during fermentative production of gellan gum and problems associated with mass transfer have been addressed. Information on the biosynthetic pathway of gellan gum, enzymes and precursors involved in gellan gum production and application of metabolic engineering for enhancement of yield of gellan gum has been specified. Characteristics of gellan gum with respect to its structure, physicochemical properties, rheology of its solutions and gel formation behaviour are discussed. An attempt has also been made to review the current and potential applications of gellan gum in food, pharmaceutical and other industries.Tijekom fermentacije mikroorganizmi izlučuju egzopolisaharide, polimere topljive u vodi. Gelan guma je biopolimer odnedavno uvršten u skupinu mikrobnih polisaharida koji se zbog svojih novih svojstava sve više primjenjuje u industriji hrane te farmaceutskoj i kemijskoj industriji. Proizvodi ga tvrtka C.P. Kelco u Japanu i SAD-u. Dodatnim istraživanjem i razvojem tehnologije biopolimera proširit će se njegova primjena. U ovom je radu dan kritički osvrt na podatke o sintezi gelan gume s pomoću Sphingomonas paucimobilis, a osobito na proizvodnju fermentacijom te izdvajanje i pročišćavanje proizvoda. Opisana su i reološka svojstva medija tijekom proizvodnje te problemi vezani uz prijenos tvari. Navedeni su podaci o biosintetskom putu, enzimima i prekurzorima koji sudjeluju u njezinoj proizvodnji te primjena metaboličkog inženjeringa radi poboljšanja prinosa. Također se raspravljalo o značajkama gelan gume s obzirom na strukturu, fizičko-kemijska svojstva, reologiju otopina te ponašanje pri formiranju gela. Autori su prikazali sadašnju i buduću primjenu gelan gume u industriji hrane, farmaceutskoj industriji i ostalim industrijama

Skleroglukan: proizvodnja fermentacijom, izdvajanje, pročišćavanje i primjena

Exopolysaccharides produced by a variety of microorganisms find multifarious industrial applications in foods, pharmaceutical and other industries as emulsifiers, stabilizers, binders, gelling agents, lubricants, and thickening agents. One such exopolysaccharide is scleroglucan, produced by pure culture fermentation from filamentous fungi of genus Sclerotium. The review discusses the properties, fermentative production, downstream processing and applications of scleroglucan.Razni mikroorganizmi proizvode egzopolisaharide koji imaju višestruku primjenu u proizvodnji hrane, farmaceutskoj industriji i drugim industrijama, kao emulgatori, stabilizatori, učvršćivači, te sredstva za geliranje, podmazivanje i zgušnjavanje. Jedan takav polisaharid je skleroglukan proizveden fermentacijom s pomoću filamentoznih gljiva iz roda Sclerotium. U ovom se revijalnom prikazu raspravlja o svojstvima skleroglukana, njegovoj proizvodnji fermentacijom te izdvajanju i primjeni

Skleroglukan: proizvodnja fermentacijom, izdvajanje, pročišćavanje i primjena

Exopolysaccharides produced by a variety of microorganisms find multifarious industrial applications in foods, pharmaceutical and other industries as emulsifiers, stabilizers, binders, gelling agents, lubricants, and thickening agents. One such exopolysaccharide is scleroglucan, produced by pure culture fermentation from filamentous fungi of genus Sclerotium. The review discusses the properties, fermentative production, downstream processing and applications of scleroglucan.Razni mikroorganizmi proizvode egzopolisaharide koji imaju višestruku primjenu u proizvodnji hrane, farmaceutskoj industriji i drugim industrijama, kao emulgatori, stabilizatori, učvršćivači, te sredstva za geliranje, podmazivanje i zgušnjavanje. Jedan takav polisaharid je skleroglukan proizveden fermentacijom s pomoću filamentoznih gljiva iz roda Sclerotium. U ovom se revijalnom prikazu raspravlja o svojstvima skleroglukana, njegovoj proizvodnji fermentacijom te izdvajanju i primjeni

Biotechnological Production of Vitamins

Vitamini su prema definiciji esencijalna mikrohranjiva potrebna u tragovima, koje sisavci ne mogu sintetizirati. Osim njihove in vivo hranjive i fiziološke uloge kao faktora rasta ljudi, životinja, biljaka i mikroorganizama, oni se sve više koriste kao aditivi za hranu/krmiva, u medicinsko-terapeutske svrhe, te kao zdravstvena i tehnička pomoćna sredstva. Proizvodnja vitamina kemijskom sintezom ili njihova ekstrakcija iz poznatih izvora ima velike nedostatke, pa se takva proizvodnja sve više nastoji zamijeniti biotehnološkim procesima. Za neke od tih spojeva već postoje ili se tek razvijaju procesi koji koriste mikroorganizme ili alge. Različite metode poput optimiranja podloge, mutacije i odabira, genetičkog inženjeringa i konverzije s pomoću biokatalizatora primjenjuju se za poboljšanje proizvodnje vitamina. Ovaj rad opisuje sadašnje stanje u proizvodnji vitamina biotehnološkim procesima i njihovo značenje u usporedbi s postojećim kemijskim procesima.Vitamins are defined as essential micronutrients that are required in trace quantity and cannot be synthesized by mammals. Apart from their in vivo nutritional and physiological roles as growth factors for men, animals, plants and microorganisms, vitamins are now being increasingly introduced as food/feed additives, as medical-therapeutic agents, as health aids, and also as technical aids. Production of vitamins by chemical synthesis, or extraction from their known sources has serious disadvantages. This led to an increased interest in substituting these processes with biotechnological processes. For several of these compounds microbiological and algal processes exist, or are rapidly emerging. Different methods like media optimization, mutation and screening, genetic engineering and biocatalyst conversion have been used for improvement of the production of vitamins. The survey describes the current state of vitamin production by biotechnological processes and their significance, as compared to the existing chemical processes

Biobutanol: the outlook of an academic and industrialist

The gradual shift of transportation fuels from oil based fuels to alternative fuel resources and worldwide demand for energy has been the impetus for research to produce alcohol biofuels from renewable resources. Currently bioethanol and biodiesel can, however, not cover an increasing demand for biofuels. Hence, there is an extensive need for advanced biofuels with superior fuel properties. The present review is focused on the development of biobutanol, which is regarded to be superior to bioethanol in terms of energy density and hygroscopicity. Although acetone–butanol–ethanol (ABE) fermentation is one of the oldest large-scale fermentation processes, butanol yield by anaerobic fermentation remains sub-optimal. For sustainable industrial scale butanol production, a number of obstacles need to be addressed including choice of feedstock, low product yield, product toxicity to production strain, multiple end-products and downstream processing of alcohol mixtures. Metabolic engineering provides a means for fermentation improvements. Different strategies are employed in the metabolic engineering of Clostridia that aim to enhance the solvent production, improve selectivity for butanol production, and increase the tolerance of Clostridia to solvents. The introduction and expression of a non-clostridial butanol producing pathway in E. coli is a most promising strategy for butanol biosynthesis. Several rigorous kinetic and physiological models for fermentation have been formulated, which form a useful tool for optimization of the process. Due to the lower butanol titers in the fermentation broth, simultaneous fermentation and product removal techniques have been developed to improve production economics. With the use of new strains, inexpensive substrates, and superior reactor designs, economic ABE fermentation may further attract the attention of researchers all over the world. The present review is attempting to provide an overall outlook on discoveries and strategies that are being developed for commercial n-butanol production.Peer reviewe

The two stage immobilized column reactor with an integrated solvent recovery module for enhanced ABE production

The production of acetone, butanol, and ethanol (ABE) by fermentation is a process that had been used by industries for decades. Two stage immobilized column reactor system integrated with liquid–liquid extraction was used with immobilized Clostridium acetobutylicum DSM 792, to enhance the ABE productivity and yield. The sugar mixture (glucose, mannose, galactose, arabinose, and xylose) representative to the lignocellulose hydrolysates was used as a substrate for continuous ABE production. Maximum total ABE solvent concentration of 20.30 g L−1 was achieved at a dilution rate (D) of 0.2 h−1, with the sugar mixture as a substrate. The maximum solvent productivity (10.85 g L−1 h−1) and the solvent yield (0.38 g g−1) were obtained at a dilution rate of 1.0 h−1. The maximum sugar mixture utilization rate was achieved with the present set up which is difficult to reach in a single stage chemostat. The system was operated for 48 days without any technical problems.Peer reviewe

Continuous two stage acetone-butanol-ethanol fermentation with integrated solvent removal using Clostridium acetobutylicum B 5313

The objective of this study was to optimize continuous acetone–butanol–ethanol (ABE) fermentation using a two stage chemostat system integrated with liquid–liquid extraction of solvents produced in the first stage. This minimized end product inhibition by butanol and subsequently enhanced glucose utilization and solvent production in continuous cultures of Clostridium acetobutylicum B 5313. During continuous two-stage ABE fermentation, sugarcane bagasse was used as the cell holding material for the both stages and liquid–liquid extraction was performed using an oleyl alcohol and decanol mixture. An overall solvent production of 25.32 g/L (acetone 5.93 g/L, butanol 16.90 g/L and ethanol 2.48 g/L) was observed as compared to 15.98 g/L in the single stage chemostat with highest solvent productivity and solvent yield of 2.5 g/L h and of 0.35 g/g, respectively. Maximum glucose utilization (83.21%) at a dilution rate of 0.05 1/h was observed as compared to 54.38% in the single stage chemostat.Peer reviewe

Gellan Gum: Fermentative Production, Downstream Processing and Applications

The microbial exopolysaccharides are water-soluble polymers secreted by microorganisms during fermentation. The biopolymer gellan gum is a relatively recent addition to the family of microbial polysaccharides that is gaining much importance in food, pharmaceutical and chemical industries due to its novel properties. It is commercially produced by C. P. Kelco in Japan and the USA. Further research and development in biopolymer technology is expected to expand its use. This article presents a critical review of the available information on the gellan gum synthesized by Sphingomonas paucimobilis with special emphasis on its fermentative production and downstream processing. Rheological behaviour of fermentation broth during fermentative production of gellan gum and problems associated with mass transfer have been addressed. Information on the biosynthetic pathway of gellan gum, enzymes and precursors involved in gellan gum production and application of metabolic engineering for enhancement of yield of gellan gum has been specified. Characteristics of gellan gum with respect to its structure, physicochemical properties, rheology of its solutions and gel formation behaviour are discussed. An attempt has also been made to review the current and potential applications of gellan gum in food, pharmaceutical and other industries