Membrane solvent extraction with hydrophobic microporous hollow fibers and extractive bioreactor development for fuel ethanol production
A novel tubular fermentor-extractor has been developed which incorporates hydrophobic microporous hollow fiber membranes (HMHF). The hydrophobic nature of the HMHF membranes has been used to carry out two distinct functions: in situ dispersion-free solvent extraction and gas exchange. The HMHF membranes can provide oxygen or locally integrated product recovery throughout the entire reactor volume. In both modes of operation carbon dioxide is continuously removed as it is formed by the fermentation. This novel bioconversion reactor has been utilized to conduct continuous ethanol fermentations utilizing S. cerevisiae (NRRL Y-132) for upwards of 483 hours. Dibutyl phthalate was used as the solvent. No problems related to cell disruption of the membranes were observed. These studies established that it is possible to enhance ethanol productivity by maintaining lower ethanol concentration throughout the reactor, reducing end-product inhibition. Key to the development of the extractive bioconversion reactor was the characterization of the transport processes involved by using a single HMHF membrane to conduct studies of dispersion-free solvent extraction. This enabled a rational preliminary design of the fermentor-extractor to be completed. In addition, an unexpected fiber-fiber interaction has been identified through these studies.
- Research Organization:
- Stevens Inst. of Tech., Hoboken, NJ (USA)
- OSTI ID:
- 5491736
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Process for extracting ethanol from fermentation broths for direct blending into gasoline while preserving the broth for recycling
Multimembrane bioreactor for extractive fermentation: ethanol from Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Related Subjects
090222* -- Alcohol Fuels-- Preparation from Wastes or Biomass-- (1976-1989)
140504 -- Solar Energy Conversion-- Biomass Production & Conversion-- (-1989)
ALCOHOLS
BIOCONVERSION
BIOREACTORS
BIOSYNTHESIS
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON DIOXIDE
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
DESIGN
ETHANOL
EXTRACTION
FERMENTATION
FIBERS
FUNGI
HYDROXY COMPOUNDS
MEMBRANES
MICROORGANISMS
OPTIMIZATION
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PERFORMANCE TESTING
PLANTS
SACCHAROMYCES
SACCHAROMYCES CEREVISIAE
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOLVENT EXTRACTION
SYNTHESIS
TESTING
YEASTS