Sugarcane bagasse hydrolysis with phosphoric and sulfuric acids and hydrolysate detoxification for xylitol production

The effectiveness of phosphoric acid to release xylose from sugarcane bagasse hemicellulose was assessed through a 2³ full factorial design. The maximum xylose concentration in the hydrolysate (17.1 g dm^?3) was attained when the bagasse was treated at 160 °C for 60 min, using 70 mg of phosphoric acid per gram of dry‐bagasse. Hydrolysis carried out with sulfuric acid, under optimum conditions previously determined, provided a hydrolysate with a similar xylose concentration (17.2 g dm^?3). After vacuum concentration, these hydrolysates were detoxified and used for xylitol production with the yeast Candida guilliermondii. Two different detoxification strategies, which consisted of adjusting the pH of the hydrolysates to 5.5 with either calcium oxide or ammonium hydroxide, both followed by active charcoal adsorption, were tested. The best xylitol productions (18.1 and 19.2 g dm^?3) were observed when calcium oxide was used to adjust the pH of both the phosphoric and the sulfuric acid hydrolysates, respectively. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry     

Use of response surface methodology to evaluate the optimum environmental conditions for the bioconversion of xylose into xylitol in eucalyptus hemicellulosic hydrolysate

Candida guilliermondii fermented a eucalyptus hemicellulosic hydrolysate that had been treated with calcium oxide, phosphoric acid and activated charcoal. The influences of different xylose and ammonium sulfate concentrations on the production of xylitol were studied. A response surface was obtained with value R² > 0.97 and p < 0.01. The model estimated a maximum xylitol production of 20.82 g dm^?3 in the culture medium supplemented with ammonium sulfate (1.8 g dm^?3) and xylose (45.5 g dm^?3). Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry     

Xylitol production by Candida tropicalis from corn cob hemicellulose hydrolysate in a two‐stage fed‐batch fermentation process

BACKGROUND: Xylitol, a sugar alcohol widely used in food and pharmaceutical industries, can be produced through biological reduction of xylose present in hemicellulose hydrolysates by Candida tropicalis. However, the aeration rate and by‐products originating from hemicellulose hydrolysis strongly inhibit the production of xylitol in a fermentation process. A two‐stage fed‐batch fermentation system was developed to reduce these inhibitory effects and to improve xylitol production from corn cob hemicellulose hydrolysates by C. tropicalis. RESULTS: Results of batch fermentations indicated that high xylitol production could be obtained from C. tropicalis at an initial xylose concentration of 80 g L^?1 in corn cob hydrolysate medium at an aeration rate of 0.4 vvm at the micro‐aeration stage. In the two‐stage fed‐batch fermentation process, 96.5 g L^?1 xylitol was obtained after 120 h, giving a yield of 0.83 g g^?1 and a productivity of 1.01 g L^?1 h^?1, which were 12.16% and 65.57% higher than those in a batch fermentation. CONCLUSION: High xylitol production can be achieved in a two‐stage fed‐batch fermentation process, in which the negative effects of aeration rate and inhibitory compounds on xylitol formation can be considerably reduced. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Detoxification of sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysate with ion‐exchange resins for xylitol production by calcium alginate‐entrapped cells

This study describes the performance of four different resins, in sequence, to detoxify sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysate and to improve xylitol production by calcium alginate‐entrapped Candida guilliermondii FTI20037 cells under conditions of low oxygen concentration. The treatment resulted in a removal of 82.1% furfural, 66.5% hydroxymethylfurfural, 61.9% phenolic compounds derived from lignin degradation, 100% chromium, 46.1% zinc, 28.5% iron, 14.7% sodium and 3.5% nickel. On the other hand, the removal of acetic acid was not significant. A xylitol yield factor (Y_P/S) of 0.62 g g^?1 and a volumetric productivity (Q_p) of 0.24 g dm^?3 h^?1 were attained in the fermentation process for xylitol production from detoxified hydrolysate. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry     

Optimization of fermentation condition for co-production of ethanol and 2,3-butanediol (2,3-BD) from hemicellolosic hydrolysates by Klebsiella oxytoca XF7

Microbial production of ethanol and 2,3-butanediol (2,3-BD) from agro-residues has been attracting interest because of their applications in various industries, including generation of biofuel molecules. In the present investigation, the hemicellulosic fraction of corncob was hydrolyzed by indigenous holocellulase from novel psychrotolerant Aspergillus niger SH3 resulting in high xylose release (34.61?g?L^?1), followed by the bioconversion of xylose to ethanol and 2,3-BD. Taguchi design was adopted to optimize the process which resulted in 5.25- and 3.31-fold increase in 2,3-BD (12.18?±?0.53?g?L^?1) and ethanol (4.08?±?0.03?g?L^?1), as compared with un-optimized condition. For the first time, co-production of ethanol and 2,3-BD from the corncob hemicellulosic hydrolysate was performed using a newly isolated Klebsiella oxytoca XF7 strain, under the optimized fermentation conditions. These results suggest that K. oxytoca XF7 is a promising candidate for co-production of ethanol and 2,3-BD, with high xylose conversion efficiency (96.65%), facilitating the economical production of biofuel molecules.     

Effect of glucose:xylose ratio on xylose reductase and xylitol dehydrogenase activities from Candida guilliermondii in sugarcane bagasse hydrolysate

The influence of glucose on xylose reductase (XR) and xylitol dehydrogenase (XDH) enzyme activity was evaluated from sugarcane bagasse hydrolysate fermentations with different glucose:xylose ratios (1:25, 1:12, 1:5 and 1:2.5) by employing an inoculum of Candida guilliermondii grown in media containing glucose, a mixture of glucose and xylose, or only xylose as carbon sources. According to the results, the glucose:xylose ratio affected positively this bioconversion and a correlation was not observed between the favourable conditions for xylitol production and the XR and XDH activities. Also, the results were influenced not only by the glucose:xylose ratio in the fermentation medium, but also by the carbon source employed in the growth medium of the inoculum. The optimum condition for xylitol production by C. guilliermondii in sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysate should use hydrolysate with a 1:5 glucose:xylose ratio and inoculum grown in medium containing xylose as the only carbon source. Copyright © 2006 Society of Chemical Industry     

玉米秸秆半纤维素制备木糖醇的研究

首先采用无污染的碱性过氧化氢法研究了半纤维素的分离与提取,然后对提取的半纤维素分别进行化学水解和酶水解比较,最后研究了水解液发酵制备木糖醇。结果表明,半纤维素分离提取的优化参数为:2%过氧化氢,2%氢氧化钠,加热时间4 h,反应温度75℃。使用CF3COOH水解半纤维素所得木糖含量为67%~73%,水解率为76%~84%,稀盐酸预处理半纤维素再化学水解所得木糖含量高达88%,水解率上升至大约90%。半纤维素的酶水解实验表明,木聚糖酶的水解专一性高于半纤维素酶,木聚糖酶水解率为38%~60%。在水解液发酵实验中,酶水解液的木糖醇转化率高于化学水解液。另外,通过浓缩半纤维素水解液,提高发酵液的木糖初始浓度,有利于菌株生长,可以提高木糖醇转化率。研究对于玉米秸秆半纤维素制备化学品具有一定的指导意义。     

Treatments of Lignocellulosic Hydrolysates and Continuous‐Flow Hydrogenation of Xylose to Xylitol

Xylitol is produced by the heterogeneous catalytic hydrogenation of xylose over Raney nickel. The hydrogenation must typically be followed by several purification steps, which makes the chemical production relatively complex and expensive. In this study, activated carbon and bio‐purification treatments of corn stover hydrolysates and subsequent nickel‐catalyzed hydrogenation of xylose to xylitol were investigated. The activated carbon treatment was used to eliminate inhibitory compounds and increase the efficiency of the bio‐purification step. It was found that the glucose could be completely eliminated from the hydrolysate. The hydrogenation reactions of corn stover hydrolysate demonstrated that a high reaction temperature resulted in high sugar alcohol yields and selectivity. At a given temperature, the flow rate had no significant effect on xylitol yield.     

Bioconversion of corn stover hydrolysate to ethanol by a recombinant yeast strain

Three corn stover hydrolysates, enzymatic hydrolysates prepared from acid and alkaline pretreatments separately and hemicellulosic hydrolysate prepared from acid pretreatment, were evaluated in composition and fermentability. For enzymatic hydrolysate from alkaline pretreatment, ethanol yield on fermentable sugars and fermentation efficiency reached highest among the three hydrolysates; meanwhile, ethanol yield on dry corn stover reached 0.175 g/g, higher than the sum of those of two hydrolysates from acid pretreatment. Fermentation process of the enzymatic hydrolysate from alkaline pretreatment was further investigated using free and immobilized cells of recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae ZU-10. Concentrated hydrolysate containing 66.9 g/L glucose and 32.1 g/L xylose was utilized. In the fermentation with free cells, 41.2 g/L ethanol was obtained within 72 h with an ethanol yield on fermentable sugars of 0.416 g/g. Immobilized cells greatly enhanced the ethanol productivity, while the ethanol yield on fermentable sugars of 0.411 g/g could still be reached. Repeated batch fermentation with immobilized cells was further attempted up to six batches. The ethanol yield on fermentable sugars maintained above 0.403 g/g with all glucose and more than 92.83% xylose utilized in each batch. These results demonstrate the feasibility and efficiency of ethanol production from corn stover hydrolysates.     

Wheat straw acid hydrolysate as a potential cost‐effective feedstock for production of bacterial cellulose

BACKGROUND: Bacterial cellulose (BC) is an extracellular biopolymer product of vinegar bacteria, which is widely used in many areas. However, problems of high production cost have prevented widescale extension of BC applications. In this work, BC was produced using wheat straw hydrolysates prepared by dilute acid hydrolysis instead of the usual carbon sources, with the aim of decreasing the production costs of BC. RESULTS: In order to remove microbial growth inhibitors, wheat straw hydrolysates were detoxified by treatment with various alkalis including calcium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide and ammonia, and their combination with activated charcoal or laccase. Results showed that the detoxification effect using calcium hydroxide was much better than that with the other alkalis. The BC yield using hydrolysate treated with Ca(OH)₂ and activated charcoal was at least 50% higher than that using routine carbon sources. Additionally, the ions of Ca²⁺ and Na⁺ in the hydrolysates had important and positive effects on BC production while Cl^? exhibited negative effects. CONCLUSION: Wheat straw was shown to be a suitable feedstock for BC production, and a process was established for BC production from lignocellulosic feedstocks using a detoxification treatment. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effect of oxygen transfer rates on alcohols production by Candida guilliermondii cultivated on soybean hull hydrolysate

BACKGROUND: In this research the use of soybean hull hydrolysate (SHH) as substrate for xylitol and ethanol production using an osmotolerant strain of Candida guilliermondii was studied. The production of alcohols was investigated in batch cultivations in which the variable parameter was the volumetric oxygen mass transfer coefficient (k_La) obtained from three different conditions of air supply: anaerobic (150 rpm, no aeration); microaerobic (300 rpm, 1 vvm), and aerobic (600 rpm, 2 vvm), corresponding to k_La values of 0; 8; and 46 h^?1, respectively. RESULTS: SHH, although presenting a very high osmotic pressure (1413 mOsm kg^?1), was completely metabolized under aerobic conditions with high biomass productivities of 0.49 g cells (L h)^?1, with little formation of ethanol. Xylitol was produced under microaeration, with product yield of 0.22 g g^?1 xylose, with the formation of glycerol as a by‐product. No xylose was metabolized under anaerobic conditions, but ethanol was produced from hexoses with high product yields of 0.5 g g^?1. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the hydrolysis of soybean hull and its conversion to ethanol and other alcohols could be an important use of this agro‐industrial waste, which could be used for biofuel, xylitol or biomass production, depending on the aeration conditions of the cultures. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Xylitol production by different yeasts: Kinetic study and biosynthesis from cashew apple bagasse hydrolysate

Xylitol is a polyol with sweetening and anti-cariogenic properties and is highly relevant to the food and pharmaceutical industries. This work evaluates xylitol production by three yeasts (Candida tropicalis, Kluyveromyces marxianus CCA510, and Kluyveromyces marxianus ATCC 36907) from different carbon sources: D-xylose (medium xylose [MX]) and D-xylose plus D-glucose (medium xylose and glucose [MXG]). The potential of xylitol production from hemicellulose hydrolysate of cashew bagasse was evaluated. In MX medium, K. marxianus CCA510 was the strain that produced higher xylitol concentration (17.04 g · L⁻¹). However, K. marxianus ATCC 36907 and C. tropicalis produced 13.22 and 9.54 g · L⁻¹, respectively. On the other hand, in MXG medium, probably due to the presence of glucose as a carbon source, lower xylitol production was observed for all microorganisms: the CCA510 strain produced 13.30 g · L⁻¹ of xylitol, while C. tropicalis and ATCC 36907 produced 11.42 and 0.64 g · L⁻¹, respectively. Additionally, the production of ethanol as a secondary product was also noted. According to the results of the kinetic study, xylitol formation is associated with the growth and consumption of substrate (xylose), which is a typical behaviour of a primary metabolite for the three yeasts. Furthermore, the strain K. marxianus CCA510 was able to produce xylitol from cashew apple bagasse hydrolysate (CABH), evidencing its potential for use in bioprocesses related to biorefinery. In view of the results reported here, it was possible to clarify in detail the kinetics of xylitol production by the yeast strains evaluated, which had the ability to produce xylitol from CABH, providing added value to this agro-industrial residue.     

Xylitol production by liquid emulsion membrane encapsulated yeast cells

BACKGROUND: Liquid emulsion membrane (LEM)‐encapsulated live cells can be used to produce various products. This work reports on LEM‐encapsulated cells for producing xylitol and models the production process. RESULTS: Encapsulated cells of Candida mogii ATCC 18364 were used to produce xylitol from xylose. Soybean oil LEM consisting of 5% (w/v) lanolin and microwaxes was found most suitable for this process. The LEM‐encapsulated cells were immobilized in a tubular biocatalytic loop. Xylitol was produced under oxygen‐limited and aerobic conditions. Xylitol productivity and yield were 0.005 g L^?1 h^?1 and 0.52 g g^?1, respectively, for oxygen‐limited operation. Under aerobic conditions, xylitol productivity increased greatly to 0.022 g L^?1 h^?1, but yield on xylose declined to 0.49 g g^?1. A mathematical model successfully described substrate consumption and product formation in the LEM‐immobilized cell system. CONCLUSION: Potentially, immobilized cell LEM systems are useful for certain fermentations and they can be successfully modeled, as shown by the example of xylitol from xylose process. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Comparison of different procedures for the detoxification of eucalyptus hemicellulosic hydrolysate for use in fermentative processes

Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus grandis) shavings were submitted to an acid hydrolysis process with the aim of obtaining a hemicellulosic hydrolysate rich in fermentable sugars. However, the hydrolysate obtained contained, in addition to sugars, several compounds that are toxic to microorganisms, namely furfural, hydroxymethylfurfural, acetic acid and phenolics. In order to produce a hydrolysate suitable for use in fermentative processes, several procedures were evaluated for hydrolysate detoxification, including concentration by vacuum evaporation and adsorption on activated charcoal, diatomaceous earths, ion‐exchange resin or adsorbent resin. Hydrolysate concentration was especially effective for furfural removal, whereas the adsorbent resin was efficient in removing hydroxymethylfurfural, phenolics and acetic acid. Combination of this resin with activated charcoal was better than with diatomaceous earths for removal of acetic acid and phenolics. The best detoxification procedure evaluated was based on hydrolysate concentration followed by adsorption on activated charcoal and adsorbent resin. By this treatment, removal rates of 82.5, 100, 100 and 94% were attained for acetic acid, furfural, hydroxymethylfurfural and phenolics, respectively. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry     

A study on the recovery of xylitol by batch adsorption and crystallization from fermented sugarcane bagasse hydrolysate

Xylitol was recovered from fermented sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysate by adsorption and crystallization procedures. Silica gel adsorption was employed to purify the broth containing xylitol. In this step, different mixtures of the solvents ethyl acetate, ethanol and acetone were used as eluent, and different proportions of fermented broth volume incorporated per gram of silica gel (V_b/M_sg, varying from 1.0 to 2.0 cm³ g^?1) were used to pack the column employed as stationary phase bed. The xylitol purification efficiency varied for each mixture of solvent, and for each V_b/M_sg ratio used. The purified broth was submitted to different crystallization procedures (cooling, concentration and supplementation with commercial xylitol) aiming to recover xylitol crystals. The best result (60% crystallization yield and 33% total recovery of xylitol from fermented broth) was obtained when the column was packed with a V_b/M_sg ratio of 2 cm³ g^?1, and the broth was purified with a mixture of ethyl acetate and ethanol, concentrated 6.5‐fold, and supplemented with commercial xylitol to force the precipitation. Copyright © 2006 Society of Chemical Industry     

Chemical characterization and liberation of pentose sugars from brewer's spent grain

The chemical composition of brewer's spent grain (BSG), generated from a process using 100% malted barley, was investigated. BSG is mainly composed of (g kg^?1) hemicellulose (284), lignin (278), cellulose (168) and protein (152.5), but it also contains extractives and ashes in smaller proportions. Minerals in BSG include calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, aluminum, iron, barium, strontium, manganese, copper, zinc, phosphorus, sulfur, chromium and silicon. In order to find alternative uses for BSG, this by‐product was subjected to acid hydrolysis process to recover the hemicellulosic sugars, which have a large number of industrial applications. The process was carried out under different conditions of liquid‐to‐solid ratio and acid concentration to evaluate the influence of these two variables on BSG hemicellulose hydrolysis. Under all the hydrolysis conditions evaluated, arabinose was recovered with higher efficiency than xylose. Under the best evaluated reaction conditions (liquid‐to‐solid ratio of 10 g g^?1 and 120 mg H₂SO₄ g^?1 dry matter) 76.2% of the hemicellulose was hydrolyzed and the xylose and arabinose sugars were recovered with 67 and 97.8% efficiency, respectively. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry     

Improved xylitol production in media containing phenolic aldehydes: application of response surface methodology for optimization and modeling of bioprocess

BACKGROUND: The combined effects of vanillin and syringaldehyde on xylitol production by Candida guilliermondii using response surface methodology (RSM) have been studied. A 2² full‐factorial central composite design was employed for experimental design and analysis of the results. RESULTS: Maximum xylitol productivities (Q_P = 0.74 g L^?1h^?1) and yields (Y_P/S = 0.81 g g^?1) can be attained by adding only vanillin at 2.0 g L^?1 to the fermentation medium. These data were closely correlated with the experimental results obtained (0.69 ± 0.04 g L^?1 h^?1 and 0.77 ± 0.01 g g^?1) indicating a good agreement with the predicted value. C. guilliermondii was able to convert vanillin completely after 24 h of fermentation with 94% yield of vanillyl alcohol. CONCLUSIONS: The bioconversion of xylose into xylitol by C. guilliermondii is strongly dependent on the combination of aldehydes and phenolics in the fermentation medium. Vanillin is a source of phenolic compound able to improve xylitol production by yeast. The conversion of vanillin to alcohol vanilyl reveals the potential of this yeast for medium detoxification. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

重组酵母发酵半纤维素水解液生产酒精的研究

玉米秸秆中的半纤维素主要由五碳糖组成,普通的酿酒酵母不能发酵五碳糖。今利用基因重组酵母Sacchromyces cerevisiae ZU-10发酵玉米秸秆半纤维素水解液生产酒精,针对半纤维素水解液中的主要发酵抑制物,研究了硫酸根离子、乙酸、糠醛对重组酵母生长的影响,发现S.cerevisiae ZU-10细胞对SO42·,乙酸和糠醛的耐受浓度分别为5g·L·1、0.25g·L·1和0.08g·L·1。对玉米秸秆半纤维素的水解工艺进行了比较研究,结果表明,玉米秸秆采用1%H2SO4(固液比1:10),在95℃水解12h,其中的半纤维素水解率达到93%,发酵抑制物相对较少。半纤维素水解液经石灰中和、真空浓缩及离子交换处理后,可用于酒精发酵。半纤维素水解液的糖浓度与浓缩倍数及发酵抑制物浓度成正相关,对于重组酵母S.cerevisiae ZU-10,半纤维素水解液的适宜糖浓度为80g·L·1。在此浓度下,接种量1.2g·L·1(细胞干重计)、30℃、厌氧发酵96h,酒精浓度为31.05g·L·1,水解液中的木糖利用率达到95.85%。该研究结果对于促进半纤维素资源的转化利用,加速秸秆酒精的产业化进程具有重要意义。     

Purification and crystallization of xylitol from fermentation broth of corncob hydrolysates

Xylitol, a five-carbon sugar alcohol, is a valuable sugar substitute, and widely used in the pharmaceutical, odontological and food industry due to its interesting properties. In the past decades, the xylitol industry has grown rapidly and more attention has been focused on xylitol purification, which possesses an important proportion of the whole industry. In our paper, the purification and crystallization of xylitol fermentation broth by biotechnology using corncob hydrolysates as substance were studied. An initial xylitol fermentation broth was decolored with activated carbon (1% M⁻¹, 60°C, 165 rpm), desalted with a combination of two ionexchange resins (732 and D301), and residual sugars were separated with UBK-555(Ca²⁺). Then the solution was vacuum-concentrated up to supersaturation (750 g/L xylitol). After adding 1% xylitol crystal seeds, the supersaturated solution was cooled to −20°C for 48 h. The crystalline xylitol of a regular tetrahedral shape with purity 95% and crystallization yield 60.2% was obtained from the clarified xylitol fermentation broth. An intact, economical and environmental-friendly route of purification and crystallization of xylitol from fermentation of corncob hydrolysates was obtained, and its experimental procedure and data provided a sound basis for large-scale industrial production.     

Clarification of a wheat straw‐derived medium with ion‐exchange resins for xylitol crystallization

BACKGROUND: Xylitol bioproduction from lignocellulosic residues comprises hydrolysis of the hemicellulose, detoxification of the hydrolysate, bioconversion of the xylose, and recovery of xylitol from the fermented hydrolysate. There are relatively few reports on xylitol recovery from fermented media. In the present study, ion‐exchange resins were used to clarify a fermented wheat straw hemicellulosic hydrolysate, which was then vacuum‐concentrated and submitted to cooling in the presence of ethanol for xylitol crystallization. RESULTS: Sequential adsorption into two anion‐exchange resins (A‐860S and A‐500PS) promoted considerable reductions in the content of soluble by‐products (up to 97.5%) and in medium coloration (99.5%). Vacuum concentration led to a dark‐colored viscous solution that inhibited xylitol crystallization. This inhibition could be overcome by mixing the concentrated medium with a commercial xylitol solution. Such a strategy led to xylitol crystals with up to 95.9% purity. The crystallization yield (43.5%) was close to that observed when using commercial xylitol solution (51.4%). CONCLUSION: The experimental data demonstrate the feasibility of using ion‐exchange resins followed by cooling in the presence of ethanol as a strategy to promote the fast recovery and purification of xylitol from hemicellulose‐derived fermentation media. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry