Highly selective butyric acid production by coupled acidogenesis and ion substitution electrodialysis

• Published in: Water research (Oxford) 2022-11, Vol.226, p.119228-119228, Article 119228
• Main Authors: Zhao, Wenyan, Yan, Binghua, Ren, Zhiyong Jason, Wang, Shanquan, Zhang, Yang, Jiang, Heqing
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acidogenic fermentation; Anaerobic membrane bioreactor; Closed carbon loop; Electrodialysis; Inorganic carbon
• ISSN: 0043-1354; 1879-2448
• DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2022.119228

•The electromembrane process helps to create a unique fermentation microenvironment.•The coupling strategy contributed 45.49% increase in the fraction of butyric acid.•The 13C isotope test confirmed the contribution of inorganic carbon assimilation.•Clostridium sensu stricto 11/12 and Caproiciproducens were key genera. Selective production of carboxylic acids (CAs) from mixed culture fermentation remains a difficult task in organic waste valorization. Herein, we developed a facile and sustainable carbon loop strategy to regulate the fermentation micro-environment and steer acidogenesis towards selective butyric acid production. This new ion substitution electrodialysis-anaerobic membrane bioreactor (ISED-AnMBR) integrated system demonstrated a high butyric acid production at 11.19 g/L with a mass fraction of 76.05%. In comparison, only 1.04 g/L with a mass fraction of 30.56% was observed in the uncoupled control reactor. The carbon recovery reached a maximum of 96.09% with the assistance of ISED. Inorganic carbon assimilation was believed to be an important contributor, which was verified by 13C isotopic tracing. Microbial community structure shows the dominance of Clostridia (80.16%) in the unique micro-environment (e.g., pH 4.80–5.50) controlled by ISED, which is believed beneficial to the growth of such fermentative bacteria with main products of butyric acid and acetic acid. In addition, the emergence of chain elongators such as Clostridium sensu stricto 12 was observed to have a great influence on butyric acid production. This work provides a new approach to generate tailored longer chain carboxylic acids from organic waste with high titer thus contributing to a circular economy. [Display omitted]