Optimization of Chlorella vulgaris cultivation grown in waste molasses syrup using mixture design

The aim of this study was to determine and optimize culture media for Chlorella vulgaris microalgae under mixotrophic conditions using waste molasses as a cheap carbon source containing both organic carbons and other nutrients. In the current study, at first the growth and lipid productivity of C. vulgaris were assessed in different culture media and the best media was selected for mixotrophic growth conditions. Significant medium ingredients were screened through Plackett–Burman design. Then ingredients with positive effect were considered as a mixture component and their combinations were evaluated on lipid productivity using mixture design. According to results, Zarrouk medium was considered as the base medium with the highest biomass and lipid productivity of 72 and 7.1 mg L⁻¹ d⁻¹, respectively. Based on the Plackett–Burman design, out of 11 factors, molasses, NaNO₃ and K₂HPO₄ demonstrated key roles in biomass and lipid productivity in mixotrophic conditions. Consequently, the selected three factors were investigated by mixture design. The results showed that high concentration of molasses causes decrease in biomass and lipid productivity due to high turbidity and a blend consisting of approximately 9.5 g L⁻¹ molasses, 5 g L⁻¹ NaNO₃ and 0.15 g L⁻¹ K₂HPO₄ was found as the optimum mixture with obtained lipid productivity of 115 mg L⁻¹ d⁻¹. In conclusion, waste molasses can be used as a promising feedstock for cost effective cultivation of C. vulgaris.     

Continuous production of poly‐β‐hydroxybutyrate by high‐cell‐density cultivation of Wautersia eutropha

BACKGROUND: Poly‐β‐hydroxybutyrate (PHB) accumulation is triggered by limitation of a nutrient other than carbon. The production cost of PHB is very high. In order to reduce this cost, continuous cultivation for the accumulation of PHB was investigated. The culture was first allowed to grow under fed‐batch conditions to yield a significant increase in biomass and PHB accumulation. Thereafter this high‐cell‐density biomass containing PHB was allowed to grow and maintained under conditions of continuous cultivation so that the overall process could be simplified and economised. RESULTS: For continuous cultivation a medium containing 90 g L^?1 fructose and 2.5 g L^?1 nitrogen (as urea) was fed continuously at a dilution rate of 0.1 h^?1. A steady state biomass of 27.7 g L^?1 with a PHB concentration of 5.5 g L^?1 was established in the bioreactor. This resulted in a continuous PHB productivity of 0.55 g L^?1 h^?1. CONCLUSION: The experiments have resulted in the development of a novel production technology involving the integration of batch, fed‐batch and continuous processes. At the same time the production of PHB under continuous cultivation increases the overall industrial importance of the system. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Multiobjective optimization of microalgae (Chlorella sp.) growth in a photobioreactor using Box‐Behnken design approach

This study investigates a parameter optimization approach to maximize the specific growth rate of the Chlorella vulgaris microalgae species, its biomass productivity, and CO₂ capture rate. For this purpose, the Box‐Behnken experimental design technique is applied with temperature, nitrogen to phosphorus ratio, and light‐dark cycle per day, as the growth controlling parameters. For each response, a quadratic model is developed separately describing the algal specific growth rate, biomass productivity, and CO₂ capture rate, respectively. The maximum specific growth rate of 0.84 d^?1 is obtained at 25 °C, with a nitrogen to phosphorus ratio of 3.4:1, and light‐dark cycles of 24/0 h. Maximum biomass productivity of 147.3 mg L^?1 d^?1 is found at 30 °C, with a nitrogen to phosphorus ratio of 3:1, and light‐dark cycles of 12/12 h. In addition, the maximum CO₂ capture rate of 159.5 mg L^?1 d^?1 is also obtained at 30 °C, with a nitrogen to phosphorus ratio of 4:1, and light‐dark cycles of 23/1 h. Finally, a multi‐response optimization method is applied to maximize the specific growth rate, biomass productivity, and CO₂ capture rate, simultaneously. The optimal set of 30 °C, a nitrogen to phosphorus ratio 3:1, and light‐dark cycles 16/8 h, provide the maximum specific growth rate of 0.66 per day, biomass productivity of 147.6 mg L^?1 d^?1, and CO₂ capture rate of 141.7 mg L^?1 d^?1.

     

Inulin as a Promising Alternative Feedstock for Docosahexaenoic Acid Production by Schizochytrium sp. ATCC 20888

Schizochytrium sp. is considered as a promising alternative commercial source of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), but the production is hindered by the high feedstock cost. In this study, inulin is used as a cheap and readily available feedstock for Schizochytrium sp. ATCC 20888 to produce DHA. The strain could not utilize inulin directly and therefore inulin first needed to be hydrolyzed. Compared with the acidic hydrolyzate by HCl and hydrolyzate by endo‐inulinase, the hydrolyzate by exo‐inulinase serves as the most effective carbon source for microalgal growth. Hydrolysis of inulin by exo‐inulinase is further optimized, and up to 97.8% of inulin conversion is obtained under the optimal conditions of 40 °C, pH 7.0, substrate concentration of 80 g L^?1 and exo‐inulinase loading of 2 g kg^?1 substrate for 12 h. The resulting hydrolyzate containing mainly fructose is used for the DHA production by the microalga. The lipid content in biomass, DHA content in total fatty acids, DHA yield, and DHA productivity at 72 h reach 45.26%, 35.59%, 5.64 g L^?1 and 1.88 g L^?1 d^?1, respectively. The results suggest that inulin is an excellent feedstock for Schizochytrium sp. suitable for commercial DHA production. Practical Applications: DHA is an essential nutrient for human health and is widely used in infant formula and functional food. As a reserve carbohydrate, inulin present in plants represents a cheap, abundant, and readily available bioresource. This study describes the suitability of inulin as a promising alternative to glucose for DHA production by Schizochytrium sp. Hence, a practical bioprocess for commercial DHA production from inulin by Schizochytrium sp. could be developed. As far as it is known, this is the first report of inulin as a feedstock for Schizochytrium sp. to produce DHA.     

The effects of dilution rate and glucose concentration on continuous acetone–butanol–ethanol fermentation by Clostridium acetobutylicum immobilized on bricks

BACKGROUND: Owing to the rapid depletion of petroleum fuel, the production of butanol through biological routes has attracted increasing attention. However, low butanol productivity severely impedes its potential industrial production. It is known that the immobilization of whole cells can enhance productivity in the acetone‐butanol‐ethanol (ABE) continuous fermentation process. Therefore, the objective of this study was to develop a low‐cost continuous operation for butanol production. RESULTS: Bricks were chosen as cell support because of their low cost and ease of use for immobilization. The solvent productivity for the bricks with immobilized cells was 0.7 g L^?1 h^?1, 1.89 times that of free cells (0.37 g L^?1 h^?1) at a dilution rate of 0.054 h^?1. The productivity improvement can contribute to greater retention of biomass inside the reactor due to immobilization. The increase in glucose feed concentration raised total solvent production. However, it resulted in a decrease in yield (grams of solvents produced per gram of glucose introduced). Continuous operation with immobilized cells at a dilution rate of 0.107 h^?1 resulted in a solvent productivity of 1.21 g L^?1 h^?1, 2.1 times that of the operation at 0.027 h^?1. However, the yield (butanol produced per glucose consumed) was decreased to 0.19 from 0.29 under the same glucose feeding condition of 60 g L^?1. CONCLUSION: The increase in dilution rate and feed glucose concentration enhanced productivity, but decreased the utilization of substrates and the final solvent concentration. Therefore, a balance between productivity and glucose utilization is required to ensure continuous process operation. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Biodiesel production from Stichococcus strains at laboratory scale

BACKGROUND: This paper reports the results of an experimental campaign of autotrophic cultures of Stichococcus strains aiming at selecting the most promising strain for biofuel production. The strain selected—S. bacillaris 158/11—was cultivated in 1 L lab‐scale bubble column photobioreactors under fed‐batch and semi‐continuous conditions. A Bold basal medium supplemented with NaNO₃ as nitrogen source was adopted. Tests were carried out at 23 °C, 140 µE m^?2 s^?1, and air flow rate ranging between 0.4 and 4 vvm. Cultures were characterized in terms of pH, concentration of total nitrogen, total organic carbon, total inorganic carbon, biomass, lipid fraction and methyl‐ester distribution of transesterified lipids. RESULTS: S. bacillaris 158/11 proved to be the best strain to produce biodiesel. Methyl‐ester distribution was characterized by a large fraction of methyl palmitate, methyl linolenate, methyl linoleate, and methyl oleate along with phytol. The process photosynthetic efficiency—fraction of available light stored as chemical energy ‐ was about 1.5%. Specific biomass productivity was ～60 mg_DM L^?1 day^?1 under the semi‐continuous conditions tested. Total lipid productivity was 14 mg L^?1 day^?1 at a dilution rate of 0.050 L day^?1. CONCLUSION: S. bacillaris 158/11 is a potential strain for massive microalgae cultures for biofuel production. Higher biomass/total‐lipid productivity could be obtained in sunlight. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Production of poly‐3‐hydroxybutyrate by Cupriavidus necator from corn syrup: statistical modeling and optimization of biomass yield and volumetric productivity

BACKGROUND: The paper reports an investigation into the possibility of producing poly‐3‐hydroxybutyrate (P(3HB)) polyester using corn syrup, a relatively low cost by‐product from the starch industries. The concentrations of medium components, corn syrup, dipotassium hydrogen phosphate (K₂HPO₄), sodium dihydrogen phosphate (NaH₂PO₄) and ammonium sulfate [(NH₄)₂SO₄] were optimized using design of experiments (DOE). RESULTS: Response surface methodology (RSM) under central composite face design (CCFD) was used to obtain the optimum values of medium components and responses in terms of biomass yield and volumetric P(3HB) productivity. The highest P(3HB) productivity and biomass yield obtained were 0.224 g L^?1 h^?1 and 0.57 g g^?1, respectively. A limited‐nitrogen concentration had a higher volumetric P(3HB) productivity (0.170 g L^?1 h^?1) than that of the excess nitrogen batch experiment (0.0675 g L^?1 h^?1). The optimum corn syrup:N:P ratio of 50:0.078:1 was based on numerical optimization of the desirability function between biomass yield and volumetric P(3HB) productivity by Cupriavidus necator DSMZ 545. CONCLUSION: The results obtained in this study demonstrated that P(3HB) could be efficiently produced to a high concentration with high productivity by applying nitrogen limitation in a defined medium, indicating this agricultural by‐product to be a suitable nutrient source in further studies to develop biomaterials through biotechnology. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry     

Maximizing the production of acetone—butanol in an alginate bead fluidized bed reactor using clostridium acetobutylicum

Low volumetric solvent productivities are one of the characteristics of an acetone-butanol fermentation by C. acetobutylicum. A calcium alginate immobilized continuous culture was used in a novel gas-sparged reactor to strip the solvents from the aqueous phase and reduce their toxicity. A dilution rate of 0.07 h^?1 was found to give maximum solvent productivity at 0.58 g dm^?3 h^?1, although at 0.12 h^?1 the productivity was slightly lower. In order to increase glucose uptake by the culture, feed glucose concentrations were increased over time to attempt to acclimatize the culture. This resulted in a productivity as high as 0.72 g dm^?3 h^?1 although this production rate was found to be unstable.     

Optimization of chromium removal by the chromium resistant mutant of the cyanobacterium Anacystis nidulans in a continuous flow bioreactor

BACKGROUND: Chromium removal potential of the cyanobacterium Anacystis nidulans and its chromium resistant strain Cr^rI8 has been optimized. Optimized parameters include biomass load, pH, temperature and dilution rate of the bioreactor. RESULTS: Results show that chromium resistant strain has high EC₅₀ dose for chromium compared to wild strain. Chromium removal potential of both strains is strongly influenced by various factors. Optimized conditions in batch system included pH 6.5, temperature 28 °C, biomass load 150 µg protein mL^?1 for 30 µmol L^?1 Cr⁶⁺ solution. In continuous flow bioreactor at optimum pH (6.5) and temperature (28 °C) at a fixed biomass of 10 mg protein and 30 µmol L^?1 Cr⁶⁺, metal removal efficiency varied with dilution rate. For A. nidulans continuous flow bioreactor, optimum dilution rate was 0.076 h^?1 (64.6 per cent metal removal) while for Cr^rI8 it was 0.152 h^?1 (85.8 per cent metal removal). Operative time of the Cr^rI8 bioreactor was also more (85 h) compared to A. nidulans bioreactor (45 h). CONCLUSION: Under optimized conditions resistant strain Cr^rI8 removed more Cr⁶⁺ compared to A. nidulans and thus has the potential to be exploited for Cr⁶⁺ removal from industrial effluents at large scale. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry     

Continuous ethanol production from carob pod extract by immobilized Saccharomyces cerevisiae in a packed-bed reactor

The continuous production of ethanol from carob pod extract by immobilized Saccharomyces cerevisiae in a packed-bed reactor has been investigated. At a substrate concentration of 150 g dm^?3, maximum ethanol productivity of 16 g dm^?3 h^?1 was obtained at D = 0·4 h^?1 with 62·3% of theoretical yield and 83·6% sugars′ utilization. At a dilution rate of 0·1 h^?1, optimal ethanol productivity was achieved in the pH range 3·5–5·5, temperature range 30–35·C and initial sugar concentration of 200 g dm^?3. Maximum ethanol productivity of 24·5 g dm^?3 h^?1 was obtained at D = 0·5 h^?1 with 58·8% of theoretical yield and 85% sugars′ utilization when non-sterilized carob pod extract containing 200 g dm^?3 total sugars was used as feed material. The bioreactor system was operated at a constant dilution rate of 0·5 h^?1 for 30 days without loss of the original immobilized yeast activity. In this case, the average ethanol productivity, ethanol yield (% of theoretical) and sugars′ utilization were 25 g dm^?3 h^?1, 58·8% and 85·5%, respectively.     

Biomass production by thermophilic microorganisms simultaneously using reaction heat

An energy-economic use of reaction heat is possible only if thermophilic microorganisms convert carbon substrates into biomass at temperatures above 65°C. The thermophilic bacterium Bacillus stearothermophilus TP5 was isolated from a man-made hot water reservoir. The highest specific growth rate of 1.6 h^?1 was obtained in continuous cultivation (chemostat) on a glucose-containing nutrient medium at 68°C, pH 6.8 and normal pressure. The highest values for the biomass production rate (3.2 g dm^?3 h^?1) and the biomass yield coefficient (0.39 gg^?1) were obtained at a dilution rate of 1.3 h^?1 (about 80% of the highest specific growth rate) under the above-mentioned conditions. The biomass production rate of the thermophilic bacterium was higher in the chemostat than in the semicontinuous process at normal pressure. The biomass produced in the chemostat at a dilution rate of 0.4 h^?1 contained 71% of protein and 8% of RNA and had an ash content of 6%. The optimum and maximum temperatures of growth were changed by raising the pressure inside the reactor. As a prerequisite for the energy-economic use of the reaction heat, the specific heat production was determined by using a special calorimeter. The ratio of heat production to oxygen consumption (oxy-caloric coefficient) was found to be 13.6 kJ g^?1, which is close to the theoretical value deduced from mass- and energy-balance theory.     

Bio‐oxidation of ferrous ions by Acidithioobacillus ferrooxidans in a monolithic bioreactor

BACKGROUND: The bio‐oxidation of ferrous iron is a potential industrial process in the regeneration of ferric iron and the removal of H₂S in combustible gases. Bio‐oxidation of ferrous iron may be an alternative method of producing ferric sulfate, which is a reagent used for removal of H₂S from biogas, tail gas and in the pulp and paper industry. For practical use of this process, this study evaluated the optimal pH and initial ferric concentration. pH control looks like a key factor as it acts both on growth rate and on solubility of materials in the system. RESULTS: Process variables such as pH and amount of initial ferrous ions on oxidation by A. ferrooxidans and the effects of process variables dilution rate, initial concentrations of ferrous on oxidation of ferrous sulfate in the packed bed bioreactor were investigated. The optimum range of pH for the maximum growth of cells and effective bio‐oxidation of ferrous sulfate varied from 1.4 to 1.8. The maximum bio‐oxidation rate achieved was 0.3 g L^?1 h^?1 in a culture initially containing 19.5 g L^?1 Fe²⁺ in the batch system. A maximum Fe²⁺ oxidation rate of 6.7 g L^?1 h^?1 was achieved at the dilution rate of 2 h^?1, while no obvious precipitate was detected in the bioreactor. All experiments were carried out in shake flasks at 30 °C. CONCLUSION: The monolithic particles investigated in this study were found to be very suitable material for A. ferrooxidans immobilization for ferrous oxidation mainly because of its advantages over other commonly used substrates. In the monolithic bioreactor, the bio‐oxidation rate was 6.7 g L^?1 h^?1 and 7 g L^?1 h^?1 for 3.5 g L^?1 and 6 g L^?1 of initial ferrous concentration, respectively. For higher initial concentrations 16 g L^?1 and 21.3 g L^?1, bio‐oxidation rate were 0.9 g L^?1 h^?1 and 0.55 g L^?1 h^?1, respectively. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Kinetic and thermodynamic investigation of Arthrospira (Spirulina) platensis fed‐batch cultivation in a tubular photobioreactor using urea as nitrogen source

BACKGROUND: Fed‐batch culture allows the cultivation of Arthrospira platensis using urea as nitrogen source. Tubular photobioreactors substantially increase cell growth, but the successful use of this cheap nitrogen source requires a knowledge of the kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of the process. This work aims at identifying the effect of two independent variables, temperature (T) and urea daily molar flow‐rate (U), on cell growth, biomass composition and thermodynamic parameters involved in this photosynthetic cultivation. RESULTS: The optimal values obtained were T = 32 °C and U = 1.16 mmol L^?1 d^?1, under which the maximum cell concentration was 4186 ± 39 mg L^?1, cell productivity 541 ± 5 mg L^?1 d^?1 and yield of biomass on nitrogen 14.3 ± 0.1 mg mg^?1. Applying an Arrhenius‐type approach, the thermodynamic parameters of growth (ΔH* = 98.2 kJ mol^?1; ΔS* = ? 0.020 kJ mol^?1 K^?1; ΔG* = 104.1 kJ mol^?1) and its thermal inactivation ( kJ mol^?1; kJ mol^?1 K^?1; kJ mol^?1) were estimated. CONCLUSIONS: To maximize cell growth T and U were simultaneously optimized. Biomass lipid content was not influenced by the experimental conditions, while protein content was dependent on both independent variables. Using urea as nitrogen source prevented the inhibitory effect already observed with ammonium salts. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

Two Stages of N‐Deficient Cultivation Enhance the Lipid Content of Microalga Scenedesmus sp.

Scenedesmus sp. 14‐3 was identified as a suitable candidate for producing biodiesel. The present work studied the effects of nitrogen concentration on the biomass and lipid productivity of algae, the consumption of sodium nitrate, and the two‐stage N‐deficient cultivation that could enhance dramatically the accumulation of biomass and lipids of Scenedesmus sp. 14‐3. The two‐stage N‐deficient cultivation was described as follows: microalga Scenedesmus sp. 14‐3 was cultured under low light intensity (LL) for 10 days in an N‐deficient medium by 20 % inoculum concentration, and transferred to complete N‐depletion BG11 under high light intensity (HL) for 8 days. The highest lipid content of Scenedesmus sp. 14‐3 was 53.05 ± 0.08 % (10 % inoculum concentration) following the second stage of N‐deficient cultivation after 8 days. For the second stage of N‐deficient cultivation, the lipid content of Scenedesmus sp. 14‐3 was 49.85 ± 0.22 %, which was 1.8 times higher than that under low light intensity (LL) (46–48 μmol m^?2 s^?1 ) in 10 days. Meanwhile, the high algal biomass productivity was around 0.10 g L^?1 day^?1 after the first stage of N‐deficient cultivation (10 days) and the biomass productivity was around 0.037 g L^?1 day^?1 under the second stage of N‐deficient cultivation (8 days). The comparison under different culture conditions showed a significant effect of the two‐stage of N‐deficient cultivation on lipid accumulation of Scenedesmus sp. 14‐3. The two‐stage N‐deficient cultivation without centrifugation achieved a complete N‐depletion condition, but the two‐stage process required centrifugation which is unsuitable for commercialization and large‐scale utilization. In summary, two‐stage N‐deficient cultivation is a more suitable and effective culture method for commercial applications and dramatic accumulation of lipids than the two‐stage process.     

Performance of different immobilized‐cell systems to efficiently produce ethanol from whey: fluidized batch,packed‐bed and fluidized continuous bioreactors

BACKGROUND: The bioconversion of whey into ethanol by immobilized Kluyveromyces marxianus in packed‐bed and fluidized bioreactors is described. Both batch and continuous cultures were analyzed using three different strains of K. marxianus and the effect of the operating mode, temperature, and dilution rates (D) were investigated. RESULTS: All immobilized strains of K. marxianus (CBS 6556, CCT 4086, and CCT 2653) produced similar high yields of ethanol (0.44 ± 0.01 g EtOH g^?1 sugar). Significant variations of conversion efficiencies (66.1 to 83.3%) and ethanol productivities (0.78 to 0.96 g L^?1 h^?1) were observed in the experiments with strain K. marxianus CBS 6556 at different temperatures. High yields of ethanol were obtained in fluidized and packed‐bed bioreactors continuous cultures at different D (0.1 to 0.3 h^?1), with the highest productivity (3.5 g L^?1 h^?1) observed for D = 0.3 h^?1 in the fluidized bioreactor (87% of the maximal theoretical conversion), whereas the highest ethanol concentration in the streaming effluent (28 g L^?1) was obtained for D = 0.1 h^?1. Electronic micrographs of the gel beads showed efficient cell immobilization. CONCLUSION: Batch and continuous cultivations of immobilized K. marxianus in fluidized and packed‐bed bioreactors enable high yields and productivities of ethanol from whey. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effects of light quality on the accumulation of oil in a mixed culture of Chlorella sp. and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

BACKGROUND: Chlorella strains rather than terrestrial oil crops having higher oil content and shorter generation time have been considered as promising candidates for alternative biodiesel. Since the influence of light quality on oil formation of microalgae in either monoculture or mixed culture has been shown to be either inconsistent or ambiguous, a light‐emitting diode (LED) photo‐bioreactor with different light sources and intensities was used in this study to investigate a cost‐effective lipid production process. RESULTS: The oil accumulation in a mixed culture of Chlorella sp. and Saccharomyces cerevisiae was higher than that in the monoculture under the different light sources used. Results of the influence of light quality on the mixed culture indicated that the optimal light wavelength and intensity for biomass formation was red LED light at 1000 lux, whereas the optimum for oil formation was blue LED light at 1000 lux. A novel two‐stage LED photo‐bioreactor was thus proposed and the highest P_max and productivity in this study were obtained as 261 mg L^?1 and 8.16 mg L^?1 h^?1, respectively. CONCLUSION: A novel two‐stage LED photo‐bioreactor using a mixed culture to optimize microalgal oil production was proposed and successfully demonstrated in this study. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Production of cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase by batch and chemostat culture of Bacillus macerans in chemically defined medium

A chemically defined medium for cultivation of Bacillus macerans is reported. Growth rates and cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase (CGT) titres obtained were similar to those obtained using media containing potato extract. The proteins in supernatant fluids from a batch culture were separated by disc electrophoresis and results obtained showed that CGT was produced after growth ceased, in agreement with results of activity measurements. The maximum growth rate in the chemostat considerably exceeded that in batch culture; this anomalous effect is unexplained. High CGT titres were produced at low dilution rates (0.03 to 0.05 h^?1) but residual starch was present at higher dilution rates and CGT synthesis was repressed. Enzyme titres obtained in chemostat cultures at D = 0.03 h^?1 using defined medium containing 13 g starch/1 were 2.75 times greater than the maximum obtainable by batch cultivation and about 20 times greater than those reported by other workers using medium containing diced potato and CaCO₃. A two-stage chemostat cultivation was performed using dilution rates of 0.1 h^?1 and 0.033 h^?1 in the first and second stages, respectively. The CGT activity in the second stage increased by 57 per cent when a maintenance feed of starch was supplied at 0.08 g g^?1 dry biomass h^?1. Only negligible CGT titres were obtained when a dilution rate of 0.5 h^?1 was used in the first stage. For reasons not understood, DM medium would not support biomass yields greater than 5 g 1^?1. This limitation was not due to production of an inhibitor, or to deficiency of N, Fe, Zn, Mn, thiamine or biotin.     

Starmerella bombicola: recent advances on sophorolipid production and prospects of waste stream utilization

Sophorolipids are among the most extensively studied microbial biosurfactants. Starmerella bombicola is the most productive strain known for sophorolipid production, with volumetric productivity of up to 3.7 g L⁻¹ h⁻¹. This review focuses on the two most important aspects that have an influence on sophorolipid commercialization. Firstly, the metabolic engineering achievements of S. bombicola in the last decade are summarized. Secondly, three improvements of the bioprocess are described, including alternative feedstock, fermentation strategy and specially designed bioreactor. Discussion is made on the waste sources that have been used as feedstock for sophorolipid production, and the review also emphasizes the potential of food waste as nutrient source. Fermentation strategies that correlate with the specially designed bioreactors for commercialization are also discussed in detail. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry     

Lovastatin production by Aspergillus terreus in a two‐staged feeding operation

BACKGROUND: Lovastatin is known to inhibit its own synthesis in the fungus Aspergillus terreus. Therefore, the use of a fermentation strategy that continuously removes some of the lovastatin produced from the bioreactor can enhance its productivity. This paper reports on the effects of dilution rate and the composition of the feed medium on lovastatin production by A. terreus. RESULTS: The feeding strategy consisted of an initial batch/fed‐batch phase and a semi‐continuous culture phase in which the pelleted biomass was retained inside a slurry bubble column. A nitrogen‐free medium was fed at various fixed dilution rates in the semi‐continuous phase. In experiments that were designed to assess the effects of the composition of the medium, the dilution rate was held at 0.42 d^?1, but different feed media were used in separate runs. The best two‐staged production strategy was shown to consist of a 96 h batch/fed‐batch phase that used a nutritionally complete medium. This was followed by a semi‐continuous operation using a medium that was free of both nitrogen and carbon sources. CONCLUSION: Semi‐continuous operation enhanced productivity of lovastatin by 315% compared with a conventional batch operation. The optimal dilution rate in semi‐continuous operation was about 0.42 d^?1. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effects of Acetic Acid on Growth and Lipid Production by Cryptococcus albidus

The cell growth and lipid accumulation process of Cryptococcus albidus were investigated using acetic acid as the sole carbon source at different concentrations. C. albidus showed high tolerance to acetic acid at a high concentration of 30 g L^?1. The highest lipid content (32.69 ± 0.50 %) and lipid yield (0.96 ± 0.05 g L^?1) were both obtained in the medium with an initial acetic acid concentration of 30 g L^?1 on day five. Interestingly, the maximum lipid content and lipid yield was obtained on a different day in a medium with different acetic acid concentration. The fatty acid composition of the lipids accumulated by C. albidus was 16–23 % palmitic acid (C16:0), 3–5 % linolenic acid (C18:3), 42–51 % linoleic acid (C18:2) and 23–27 % oleic acid (C18:1), which was similar to that of soybean oil; thus, this microbial oil has great potential value as a renewable biodiesel feedstock. This work also provides valuable information for further research to use cheap substrates containing a high concentration of acetic acid (such as lignocellulosic hydrolysates), which is an economical and environmentally friendly form of microbial oil production.