FERMENTATION CONTROL

THE FERMENTATIVE PRODUCTION OF CHEMICAL FEEDSTOCKS IS AGAIN BECOMING COMPETITIVE TO PETRO-CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY. REVIVAL OF THE CLOSTRIDIUM ACETOBUTYLICUM FERMENTATION FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ACETONE AND BUTANOL WILL UTILIZE NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN BIOTECHNOLOGY. THE OVERALL GOAL OF THIS PROJECT WOULD BE TO OVERCOME THE GREATEST SHORTCOMING OF THE BUTANOL FERMENTATION, THE VERY LOW PRODUCT STREAM CONCENTRATIONS. THE OVERALL SIGNIFICANT FEATURE OF THIS PROJECT WOULD BE THE APPLICATION OF A NOVEL EXTRACTIVE FERMENTATION TO OVERCOME THIS BARRIER. THE FORMED BUTANOL MAY BE REMOVED FROM THE FERMENTOR, THEREBY RELIEVING INHIBITORY AND TOXIC EFFECTS WHICH LIMIT BUTANOL PRODUCTION. THIS PROCESS WOULD UTILIZE AN EFFICIENT EXTRACTANT FOR BUTANOL AND BUTYRIC ACID, N-BUTYL-N-BUTYRATE ESTER, WHICH IS GENERATED DIRECTLY FROM THE MOST TOXIC PRODUCTS OF THE FERMENTATION AND WHICH ITSELF WOULD BE A DESIRABLE END-PRODUCT AS INDUSTRIAL SOLVENT AND FUEL. THE SIGNIFICANT FEATURE OF PHASE I OF THE PROJECT IS THE REGULATION OF THE PROPORTION OF BUTANOL AND BUTYRIC ACID PRODUCED IN THE FERMENTATION BY PHOSPHATE LIMITATION. BY ELUCIDATING THE FUNDAMENTAL ASPECTS OF THIS EXTRACTIVE FERMENTATION, THE PHOSPHATE-REGULATED PRODUCTION OF ALCOHOL AND ACID PRODUCTS, THE EXTRACTION PROPERTIES OF THE ESTER AND ITS TOXICITY TO THE ORGANISM, THE EASE OF RECOVERY OF BUTANOL FROM THE ESTER AND BY TESTING AND LABORATORY-SCALE PROCESS DESIGN, A SOLID BASIS WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR EVALUATION OF THIS ATTRACTIVE NEW TECHNOLOGY.