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of India) Project on - Creation of e-Contents on Fermentation Technology

Module-3: THE COMPONENT PARTS OF A FERMENTATION PROCESS

Any fermentation process can be divided under three stages

A. Upstream processes
B. Production processes
C. Downstream processes

A. Upstream processes

Following are the steps of upstream process

 Screening of industrially important microbes

 Primary screening, preparation of pure culture and selection of production strain at

lab scale level

 Secondary screening and optimization of production parameter of production

strain at lab and pilot scale

 Genetic modification of production strain if required

 The formulation of inoculum and production media and optimization of growth

parameters at lab scale for product formation

 The sterilization of the inoculum and production medium

 Sterilization of fermenter and its auxiliary equipments

 The production of sufficient pure and active microbial culture for the inoculation
in production vessel

B. Production process

 Continuous monitoring the production process to maintain best possible

conditions for maximum product formation

 Following are the certain essential operations which needs continuous monitoring.

 Change in pH of the medium and its control

 Fluctuation in temperature inside the fermenter and its control through

cooling system

 Production of foam and breaking it by adding antifoam agents

 Supply of sterile oxygen in case of aerobic condition

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 Collection of sample to know the status of product formation and absence of

presence of contaminants

 Maintaining dilution rate by adding fresh medium in case of continuous

fermentation

 Speed of agitator to maintain the proper mixing of the medium are

monitored accurately

C. Downstream processes
 The extraction of the product and its purification
 The disposal of effluents produced by the process.
Recovery and Purification of Fermentation Products

• “Down Stream processing” – a collective term for all the steps which required in
order actually recover useful products from any kind of industrial process.

• In reality, the desired final forms of the products are usually quite far removed
from the state in which they are first obtained in the bioreactor.

• Many operations which are standard in the laboratory will become impractical or
uneconomic on the process scale.

• Many time, bio products are often very labile or sensitive compounds, whose
active structures can survive only under define and limited conditions like ….

 pH
 Temperature
 Ionic strength etc

• The extraction and purification of fermentation products may be difficult and

costly.

• Extraction should be as quickly as possible with high quality product, at an

efficient recovery rate using minimum plant investment operated at minimal costs.

• Recovery costs of microbial products may vary from 15 % to as high as 70 % of

the total manufacturing costs.

• The selection of recovery process and its relative cost depends on the specific
products.

• According to Atkinson and Mavituna (1091), percentage of the total

• According to Atkinson and Mavituna (1091), percentage of the total cost being 15
% for industrial ethanol, 20-30 % for bulk penicillin - G and up to 70 % for
enzyme.

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 NMEICT-MHRD (Govt. of India) Project on - Creation of e-Contents on Fermentation Technology

• Thus, the high and sometime dominant cost of down stream processing will affect
the overall objective in some fermentations.

• AT the time of harvesting the specific products may be present at a low

concentration in an aqueous solution that contains….

 Intact microorganisms
 Cell fragments
 Soluble and insoluble medium components
 Other metabolic products

All these factors tend to increase the difficulties of products recovery

Efficient recovery need….

• Speed of operation as an overriding factor.

• Knowledge of labile nature of products.
• Type of processing equipment.
• Size of processing equipment.

Criteria for selection of recovery process

• The intracellular or extra cellular location of the product

• The concentration of the product in the fermentation broth
• The Physical and chemical properties of the desired products
• The intended (proposed) use of the products
• The minimum acceptable standard of purity
• The magnitude of bio-hazard of the product or broth
• The impurities in the fermented broth
• The marketable price for the product

There is no one unique, ideal or universal operation or even sequence of operations,

which can be recommended

Individual unit operations must be combined in the most suitable way for a particular
problems.

Project control No: RE-02091011297, Christ College, Rajkot, Gujarat, India

NMEICT-MHRD (Govt. of India) Project on - Creation of e-Contents on Fermentation Technology

Project control No: RE-02091011297, Christ College, Rajkot, Gujarat, India

 NMEICT-MHRD (Govt. of India) Project on - Creation of e-Contents on Fermentation Technology

References

 Principles of Fermentation Technology: (2nd edition, by Peter F. Stanbury, Allan

Whitaker and Stephen J. Hall, Butterworth-Heinemann, An imprint of Elsevier
Science.)
 Industrial Microbiology: (By Casida L. E.New Age international (P) ltd
publications)
 A Text Book of Industrial Microbiology: (2nd edition By Wulf Crueger &
Anneliese Crueger)
 Biotechnology: Food Fermentation Microbiology, Biochemistry & Technology Vol.
1 & 2:(By V.K. Joshi & Ashok Pandey)
 Manual of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology: (2nd Edition by Arnold L.
Demain and Julian E. Davies, Ronald M. Atlas, Gerald Cohen, Charles L.
Hershberger, Wei-Shou Hu, David H. Sherman, Richard C. Willson and J. H. David
Wu)
 Industrial Microbiology-An introduction: By Michael J. Waites, Neil L. Morgan,
John S. Rockey and Gary Higton)
 Comprehensive Biotechnology-The Principles, Applications and Rugulations of
Biotechnology in Industry, Agriculture and Medicine: (By Mrray Moo Young)
 Fermentation Technology : Up Stream Fermentation Technology- Vol-I: (By H. A.
Modi-Pointer Publications)
 Fermentation Technology : Down Stream Fermentation Technology- Vol-II: (By
H. A. Modi-Pointer Publications)
 Industrial Microbiology by Prescott and Dunn's: (4th edition, edited by Gerald
Reed, CBR publications)
 Fermentation Technology: (By M.L. Srivastava, NAROSA publications)
 Industrial Microbiology: (By A.H. Patel)
 International student edition: Microbiology- A laboratory Manual: (4th edition.
By James G. Chappuccino & Natalie Sherman)
 Bacteriological Techniques: (By F.J. Baker)
 Introduction to Microbial Techniques: (By Gunasekaran)
 Mannual of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology: (2nd Edition by Arnold
L. Demain and Julian E. Davies, Ronald M. Atlas, Gerald Cohen, Charles L.
Hershberger, Wei-Shou Hu, David H. Sherman, Richard C. Willson and J. H. David
Wu)

Web references

 http://www.homebrew.net/ferment/
 http://www.soyinfocenter.com/HSS/fermentation.php
 http://www.ensymm.com/pdf/ensymm_fermentation_abstract.pdf
Project control No: RE-02091011297, Christ College, Rajkot, Gujarat, India
 NMEICT-MHRD (Govt. of India) Project on - Creation of e-Contents on Fermentation Technology

 http://scialert.net/fulltext/?doi=jm.2007.201.208
 http://aem.asm.org/content/7/1/57.full.pdf
 http://www.slideshare.net/yongkangbirdnest/lecture-4-sterilization
 http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publications.htm?seq_no_115=14072
1
 http://www.scribd.com/doc/30706834/Fermentation-Design
 http://www.wiley-vch.de/books/sample/3527318194_c01.pdf
 http://www.engineersirelandcork.ie/downloads/Biopharmaceuticals%2020Jan09%20
-%202%20-%20Ian%20Marison%20DCU.pdf
 www.yobrew.co.uk/fermentation.php
 http://bioscipub.com/journals/bbb/pdf/19-24.pdf
 http://gertrude-old.case.edu/276/materials/web/immobilizedenzymereview.pdf
 http://download.bioon.com.cn/upload/month_0902/20090223_b809d1c59ba2a6e2abf
dJtWiJOiFDm02.attach.pdf
 http://bioprocess-maulik.blogspot.in/2007/07/design-of-industrial-fermentation.html
 http://hsc.csu.edu.au/biology/options/biotechnology/3051/biotechnologyPart3.html
 http://www.rsc.org/ebooks/archive/free/BK9780854046065/BK9780854046065-
00001.pdf
 http://www.biotech.upm.edu.my/academics/On%20Line%20Note/Bioprocess/BTK%
205301/Lect6%28Inoculum%20Preparation%20and%20Development%29.pdf
 http://www.biotechresources.com/services-strain.shtml
 http://www.idosi.org/wjc/4%281%2909/14.pdf
 http://cheserver.ent.ohiou.edu/Paper-gu/DualFeed.pdf

Project control No: RE-02091011297, Christ College, Rajkot, Gujarat, India