Poster Presentation 3-41

 

Production of Butanol from Starch Based Packing Peanuts

Using Clostridium beijerinckii BA101

 

Marisa Groberg, Troy W. Jesse, Nasib Qureshi, and Hans P. Blaschek

 

Biotechnology & Bioengineering Group

Dept. of Food Science & Human Nutrition

University of Illinois

1207 W Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL 61801, USA

 

Telephone:  (217) 244-6354; Fax:  (217) 244-2517; E-mail:  nqureshi@uiuc.edu

 

Preliminary economic studies on bioconversion of corn to butanol suggested that substrate cost dramatically affects butanol price [1].  Use of carbohydrate-based waste as substrate is one solution to this problem, which not only protects the environment but also provides important fuels and chemicals.  For this reason we have initiated a research program to examine the bioconversion of waste substrates into butanol.   Starch based packing peanuts are one example of such a substrate.  In batch reactors up to 21.7 gL-1 acetone butanol ethanol (ABE) has been produced using recycled packing peanuts and Clostridium beijerinckii BA101 [2].  The productivity of this system was 0.20 gL-1h-1.  Furthermore, these studies were extended to ABE production in free cell continuous reactors as those reactors have several advantages over batch fermentation.  When using packing peanuts, the culture was found to be stable for up to five residence times after which there was a decrease in ABE production.  During the five residence times the average ABE concentration was 7.42 gL-1, with a productivity of 0.24 gL-1h-1.  It should be noted that starch in packing peanuts was not hydrolyzed prior to the fermentations. The rate of starch hydrolysis by the culture was faster than sugar utilization.

 

References

 

  1. Qureshi N, Blaschek HP (2000) Economics of butanol fermentation using hyper-butanol producing Clostridium beijerinckii BA101. Trans IChemE, 78: Part C, 139-144

  2. Jesse TW, Ezeji T, Qureshi N, Blaschek HP (2001) Production of butanol from starch based packing peanuts and model agricultural waste. J Ind Microbiol & Biotechnol (submitted)

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