Selection of strains for efficient very high gravity bio-ethanol fermentation processes

Francisco B. Pereira (1) , Pedro M. R. Guimarães (1) , José A. Teixeira (1) , Lucília Domingues (1)

1 IBB - Institute for Biotechnology and Bioengineering

An optimized very high gravity (VHG) glucose medium supplemented with low cost nutrient sources was used to evaluate bio-ethanol production by 11 strains. The industrial strains PE-2 and CA1185 exhibited the best overall fermentation performance, producing an ethanol titre of 19.2% (v/v) corresponding to a batch productivity of 2.5 g l h, while the best laboratory strain (CEN.PK 113-7D) produced 17.5% (v/v) ethanol with a productivity of 1.7 g l h. The results presented here emphasize the biodiversity found within species and that naturally adapted strains, such as PE-2 and CA1185, are likely to play a key role in facilitating the transition from laboratory technological breakthroughs to industrial-scale bio-ethanol fermentations.

Mots clés: Bio-ethanol production; Industrial strains; Laboratory strains; Very high gravity fermentation

Francisco B. Pereira, Pedro M. R. Guimarães, José A. Teixeira, Lucília Domingues. Selection of strains for efficient very high gravity bio-ethanol fermentation processes. Biotechnology Letters, 2010, 32 (11), pp.1655-1661. ⟨10.1007/s10529-010-0330-9⟩. ⟨hal-00602990⟩