Microbial oxidation of naphthalene to cis-1,2-dihydroxy-1,2-dihydronaphthalene in a membrane bioreactor

A microbial dihydroxylation process for the production of cis-1,2-dihydroxy-1,2-dihydronaphthalene from naphthalene is reported. The oxidation reaction was initially studied in a stirred tank reactor using resting cells of a Pseudomonas fluorescens mutant, grown on glucose as carbon source and acetyl salicylate as inducer of the naphthalene dioxygenase enzymatic system. In these conditions the productivity of the system was limited by the efficiency of the oxygenation and by a reversible product inhibition phenomenon. In order to overcome the inhibitory effect of the 1,2-dihydrodiol accumulation, the biotransformations were carried out in a stirred reactor equipped with a membrane ultrafiltration device. In this way, the cells and the insoluble naphthalene were retained and recycled into the vessel, while the soluble diol was continuously removed through the membrane permeate. The diol was recovered by selective adsorption on a column packed with an adsorbent resin, allowing the rapid and direct recycle of the reaction medium back to the enzymatic reactor. This system afforded a final yield three-fold higher than that of the batch process, exhibiting a bioconversion rate of 1·3 g h⁻¹ dm⁻³ for more than 16 h of continuous working.