Efficient butanol recovery from acetone–butanol–ethanol fermentation cultures grown on sweet sorghum juice by pervaporation using silicalite-1 membrane

• Published in: Journal of bioscience and bioengineering 2016-06, Vol.121 (6), p.697-700
• Main Authors: Kanemoto, Miho, Negishi, Hideyuki, Sakaki, Keiji, Ikegami, Toru, Chohnan, Shigeru, Nitta, Youji, Kurusu, Yasurou, Ohta, Hiroyuki
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 1-Butanol - isolation & purification; 1-Butanol - metabolism; Acetone - metabolism; Batch Cell Culture Techniques; Biobutanol; Charcoal; Clostridium beijerinckii; Clostridium beijerinckii - growth & development; Clostridium beijerinckii - metabolism; Ethanol - metabolism; Fermentation; Membrane; Membranes, Artificial; Pervaporation; Separation; Sorghum - chemistry; Sweet sorghum; Volatilization
• ISSN: 1389-1723; 1347-4421
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiosc.2015.11.008

We investigated butanol recovery by pervaporation separation, using a silicalite-1 membrane, from batch cultures of butanol-producing Clostridium beijerinckii SBP2 grown on sweet sorghum juice as a fermentation medium. The pervaporation system yielded 73% (w/v) butanol from intact feed cultures containing 1% (w/v) butanol, and had a butanol permeation flux of 11 g m−2 h−1. Upon neutralization and activated charcoal treatment of the feed cultures, butanol yield and total flux increased to 82% (w/v) and 40 g m−2 h−1, respectively. This system is applicable to refining processes for practical biobutanol production from a promising energy crop, sweet sorghum.