The effect of initial cell concentration on xylose fermentation by Pichia stipitis

Xylose was fermented using Pichia stipitis CBS 6054 at different initial cell concentrations. A high initial cell concentration increased the rate of xylose utilization, ethanol formation, and the ethanol yield. The highest ethanol concentration of 41.0 g/L and a yield of 0.38 g/g was obtained using an initial cell concentration of 6.5 g/L. Even though more xylitol was produced when the initial cell concentrations were high, cell density had no effect on the final ethanol yield. A two-parameter mathematical model was used to predict the cell population dynamics at the different initial cell concentrations. The model parameters, a and b correlate with the initial cell concentrations used with an R(2) of 0.99.     

The effect of oxygenation on glucose fermentation with pichia stipitis

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology -     

Production of ethanol from sugar cane bagasse hemicellulose hydrolyzate byPichia stipitis

The ability ofPichia stipitis to fermentd-xylose andd-glucose in the acid-hydrolyzed hemicellulose component of sugar cane bagasse depends on the alkali used to neutralize the hydrolyzate to pH 6.5. With NH₄OH and NaOH no fermentation occurred, whereas neutralization with Ca(OH)₂ gave the best results (Q_pmax=0.25 g/L-h; Y_p/s =0.38 g/g sugar). However, the volumetric productivity was still considerably less than observed in a semisynthetic medium with a sugar composition similar to the hydrolyzate. L-arabinose was not fermented but assimilated. Sequential neutralization methods failed to improve the fermentation. Acetic acid and lignin derivatives present in the hydrolyzate were major components that inhibited the fermentation.     

Inhibitors of xylose reductase from the yeast pichia stipitis

Several compounds were examined for their inhibitory effects on xylose reductase from the yeastPichia stipitis NRC 2548. Mercuric chloride, cupric chloride, menadione sodium bisulfite, and sodium bisulfite inhibited enzyme activity in a sigmoidal dose-dependent manner, whereas quercetin and rutin were observed to have nonsigmoidal dose-response curves. Diphenylhydantoin, hydantoin, and valproic acid had no effect on xylose reductase activity. Mercuric chloride was the most potent inhibitor tested, with an IC₅₀ (the concentration that inhibited enzyme activity by 50%) of 4.7xl0^-6M. Three distinct inhibition patterns were observed amongst selected inhibitors. Mercuric chloride and quercetin were noncompetitive inhibitors of xylose reductase with respect to substrate and cofactor. Sodium bisulfite was an uncompetitive inhibitor with respect to substrate and cofactor, whereas menadione sodium bisulfite was a competitive inhibitor with respect to substrate, but noncompetitive to the cofactor.     

Isolation of xylose reductase gene ofPichia stipitis and its expression inSaccharomyces cerevisiae

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology - A NADPH/NADH-dependent xylose reductase gene was isolated from the xylose-assimilating yeast,Pichia stipitis. DNA sequence analysis showed that the gene...     

Simultaneous fermentation and isomerization of xylose to ethanol at high xylose concentration

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology -     

High-yield shake-flask fermentation of xylose to ethanol

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology - Methods of achieving high-yield fermentation ofd-xylose to ethanol in shake flasks were investigated using the microaerophilic yeastPichia stipitis NRRL...     

Removing proteins from an aerated yeast fermentation by pulsing carbon dioxide

Salting-out is a common technique used for precipitating proteins and other materials from fermentation and tissue culture processes. It leaves a salt residue in the system. Foam fractionation can also be used to remove proteins by protein precipitation from a dilute solution. In doing so, there is usually a trade-off between enrichment and recovery. An increase in the airflow rate will increase the recovery, but only at the expense of the enrichment. A new method for increasing the recovery in foam fractionations and in yeast fermentations is to add a burst of CO₂ to the process and then restore the air. This CO₂ acts like a temporary salt, but it does not leave behind a residue. The recovery increases as a result of the joint use of these gases, perhaps by more than 10-fold, without sacrificing the enrichment. Chicken egg albumin in a foam fractionation column can serve as a simple, experimental model for the proposed recovery process in lieu of the fermentation process.     

Exclusion effect of carbon dioxide on the crystallization of polypropylene

We investigated the crystallization growth of isotactic polypropylene under carbon dioxide (CO₂) at various CO₂ pressures and temperatures by in situ observation with a digital high‐fidelity microscope and a specially designed high‐pressure visualized cell. The fibrils within the spherulite were distorted and branched by crystallization under CO₂ at pressures higher than 2 MPa, and this suggested the exclusion of CO₂ from the growth front of the fibrils. The spherulite growth rate (G) at 140 °C increased with the CO₂ pressure, attained a maximum value around 0.3 MPa, and then decreased. Above 6 MPa, it became slower than that under air at the ambient pressure. An analysis of the crystallization kinetics by the Hoffman–Lauritzen theory revealed that the pressure dependence of G could be ascribed to the change in the transportation rate of crystallizable molecules (β_g) with pressure; that is, β_g increased and then decreased with pressure. The increase in β_g at a low pressure was caused by the plasticizing effect of CO₂, whereas the decrease in β_g at a high pressure was due to the exclusion of CO₂ from the crystal growth front. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 1565–1572, 2004     

Glass-liquid transition of carbon dioxide and its effect on water segregation

The interactions between CO(2) and D(2)O molecules have been investigated by using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry in the temperature rage 13-120 K. The monolayer of CO(2) tends to wet or intermix with the D(2)O film below 40 K and dewets the surface above 60 K. The water nanoclusters deposited on the CO(2) multilayers also start to segregate at 50-60 K and are finally incorporated in the bulk at 85-90 K, where the morphology of the film changes abruptly together with the desorption rate of the CO(2) molecules. The break at 85 K should be caused by the occurrence of the fluidized film whereas the glass-transition temperature of CO(2), as determined from the onset of translational molecular diffusion, is assigned to 50 K. This behavior may be related to the ultraviscous nature of the supercooled liquid, arising from the decoupling between the translational molecular diffusion and viscosity. The He(+) irradiation of the mixed CO(2)-D(2)O ice and the D(2)(+) irradiation of the CO(2) ice at 13 K do not yield any surface residues assignable to H(2)CO(3) and its precursors above 100 K. This result may be related to the segregation between the CO(2) and D(2)O molecules.     

Continuous fermentation of d-xylose by immobilizedpichia stipitis comparison between cstr and cpfr

Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology - The main purpose of this work was to compare the performance of two different kinds of reactors (CSTR and CPFR) in order to enhance the ethanol productivity...     

The effect of alkaline earth metal oxide on nickel catalyst for carbon dioxide reforming of methane

A study on the effect of alkaline earth metal oxide on the activity and stability of nickel catalyst for carbon dioxide reforming of methane was performed. When CaO, SrO, and BaO were used as supports, there was no difference in catalytic activity between the catalysts made by coprecipitation and impregnation. However, when MgO was used as a support, the catalyst prepared by coprecipitation showed superior activity than that made by impregnation. The higher activity of the catalyst made by coprecipitation was due to the formation of solid solution consisting of nickel and magnesium. The formation of the solid solution enhanced the dispersion of nickel and the resistance to coke formation.     

Adsorption of carbon dioxide on microporous carbon adsorbents

Adsorption isotherms of carbon dioxide on microporous carbon adsorbents prepared by activation with potassium sulfide in water vapor were measured. The measurements were carried out in the pressure interval from 1 Pa to 0.1 MPa at temperatures from 216.2 to 293.15 K. Based on the theory of volumetric filling of micropores, the main structural and energetic parameters of the microporous carbon adsorbents were calculated. The adsorption isosters of carbon dioxide were calculated from the adsorption isotherms in the same pressure and temperature ranges and approximated by linear dependences. The plots of the differential mole isosteric heats of adsorption vs amount adsorbed were constructed by using the adsorption isosters.     

The structure of the carbon dioxide dimer

The structure of the carbon dioxide dimer is discussed theoretically in terms of two empirical potentials and using CNDO/2 and ab initio quantum mechanical calculations. All these methods support the conclusion that there are two structures of comparable energy, the lower one being non-polar.     

An amperometric sensor for carbon dioxide based on immobilized bacteria utilizing carbon dioxide

A biosensor consisting of a CO₂-utilizing autotrophic bacterium (strain S-17, Pseudomonas type) and an oxygen-sensing electrode was constructed for the amperometric determination of CO₂. The correlation between current decrease and CO₂ concentration was linear in the range 5–200 mg l^?1 CO₂. The optimum temperature and pH for operation of the biosensor were 30°C and 5.5, respectively. The sensor did not respond to other volatile compounds except for acetic acid. The sensor could be operated continuously for about a month.     

The effect of morphology on sorption and transport of carbon dioxide in poly(4,4'-oxydiphenylene pyromellitimide)

Sorption and transport of carbon dioxide were investigated for poly(4,4'-oxydiphenylene-pyromellitimide) films (PI-1, PI-2, and PI-3) imidized at 160, 200, and 400°C, respectively, as well as for a chemically identical commercial polyimide film, Kapton-H. The solubility, permeability, and diffusion coefficients (S, P, and \[ \overline D \] , respectively) at 80°C and 20 atm in PI-3 were 67, 25, and 37%, respectively, as large as those in PI-2. These significant reductions are attributed to a higher degree of segmental aggregation in PI-3 caused by a 1.7% increase in the density (d) as compared with PI-2. The differences in S, P, \[ \overline D \] , and d between PI-3 and Kapton-H were rather small as compared with those between PI-3 and PI-2, suggesting that the in-plane orientation has a minor effect on the sorption and transport in Kapton-H as compared with the aggregation. Influence of the morphology on the dual-mode sorption and transport parameters was also investigated. With increasing density, the Langmuir capacity constant and the diffusion coefficients for the Henry's law and Langmuir populations decreased by higher rates than the Henry's law solubility constant, being contrary to the results reported for a typical semicrystalline glassy polymer, polyethylene terephthalate. This may suggest that the nonaggregated or less-aggregated regions taking an important part in the sorption and transport are denser for the sample having a higher overall density.     

Promotional effect of cerium on nickel-containing mesoporous silica for carbon dioxide reforming of methane

A series of Ce-promoted 6.7%Ni-containing mesoporous silica(Ce-Ni-Si O2)with varying Ce content(0.5%–4.8%)was prepared using the evaporation-induced self-assembly method.The characterization results showed that Ce and Ni species were homogeneously incorporated into the mesoporous silica matrix.The catalytic properties of these samples in the dry reforming of methane reaction revealed that the catalysts(e.g.,1.2%Ce-Ni-Si O2)containing highly dispersed small Ni particles exhibited excellent catalytic activity and long-term stability,which is attributed to the anchoring effect of the Ce and its ability to increase surface oxygen species concentration.     

The effect of pressure on the characteristics of supercritical carbon dioxide extracts from Calamintha nepeta subsp. nepeta

Chemists and industrialists are continuously attempting to develop greener and more environmentally benign chemical processes to extract essential oils and bioactive metabolites of high purity, finding various applications in cosmetics, detergents, nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. An increase preferenced for natural products over synthetic ones has made supercritical fluid technology a primary alternative for the generation of high-value bioactive ingredients. This effective technique requires only moderate temperatures, eliminates clean-up steps and avoids the use of harmful organic solvents. In this context, our study was focused on the chemical analysis of Calamintha nepeta subsp. nepeta aromatic extracts obtained with supercritical carbon dioxide. The effect of different operating conditions on the capacity of the lipophilic solvent to extract the targeted volatile components was also studied. The process was carried out at a fairly low constant temperature of 40°C, and with varying the pressure from 90 to 300 bar. The chemical composition of the extracts was analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy. The results showed that the composition pattern, the concentrations of individual components and the quality of the extractable analytes were affected by pressure increase. The extraction yields varied from 0.73 to 1.21 wt% at 90 and 300 bar, respectively.