• KSBB Journal
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.235-240
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• 1990

A quantitative physiological approach has been employed to estimate the metabolic parameters such as specific uptake rates of nutrients and specific production rate in continuous culture of Pseudomonas elodea for gellan gum production. The estimated values of metabolic parameters are used for process improvement. During the exponential growth phase, the specific growth rate was 0.16hr-1 in batch culture. The gellan gum concentration increased up to 0.7g dry weight/100g broth and the apparent viscosity of the culture broth was about 4,500 cp.(72hrs culture). The ratio of specific uptake rate of carbon to that of nitrogen were found to be optimum at about 3.0mg-carbon/mg-nitro-gen. With the improved medium, the maximum gellan production rate, 0.6g dry weight/1/hr, was obtained at D=0.14 hr-1. The shear stresses of culture broth were fairly well correlated with shear rates by using Casson equation and at highly viscous culture broth, oxygen transfer coefficient was greatly reduced.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.303-311
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• 2009

A scaling up study for the exopolysaccharide (EPS) production by submerged culture of Ganoderma lucidum was carried out in jar fermenter systems (2.6, 20 and 75 L) under bi-staged pH process. Profiles of dissolved oxygen (DO) and volumetric coefficient of oxygen transfer ($k_La$) as a function of operating variables (agitation speed and aeration rate) was investigated, and a correlation between $k_La$ and operating variables was analysed statistically. Under bi-staged pH process, no limitation of DO was observed at agitation speeds tested in the range of 200 and 600 rpm, and the highest EPS production was obtained at the level of DO of $40{\sim}80%$. From the regression analysis, the relation between $k_La$, gas velocity (Vs), stirrer speed (N) and impeller diameter (Di) could be expressed as : $$k_La=0.555{\times}Vs^{0.42}{\times}(N^3{\times}Di^2)^{0.33}\;(R^2=0.925,\;p<0.05)$$ It was found that under 2.6 L jar fermenter, the optimum agitation speed and aeration rate was 400 rpm and 1 vvm, respectively, obtaining the EPS production of 15.43 g/L. Under the submerged cultivation of G. lucidum in jar fermenters of $2.6{\sim}75\;L$, the similar EPS yields at each fermenter were achieved during scaling up based on $k_La$, and $k_La$ value for maximum EPS production was $85.4{\pm}26.70\;h^{-1}$.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.400-407
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• 2003

In microbial coal desulfurization process (MCDP) by using Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans, the effect of process variables on pyritic sulfur removal efficiency has been investigated. The inhibitory effect of toxic materials contained in coal matrix on the activity of desulfurizing bacteria have been evaluated in coal extracts, and the results showed that the method was useful to evaluate the applicability of a coal which is to be desulfurization to MCDP. The removal efficiency increased with decreasing particle size and decreases with increasing pulp density, but has no significant influence of particle size and pup densities at high pulp densities over 20 wt%. The mass transfers of gaseous nutrients such as oxygen and carbon dioxide into coal slurry with various pulp densities and coal particle size has been studied in an airlift bioreactor. Mass transfer coefficient was independent of pulp density in coal slurry with fine particle below 175 $\mu\textrm{m}$, but significantly decreased with increasing pulp density over 225 $\mu\textrm{m}$. The coal particles over 575 $\mu\textrm{m}$ were significantly settled to the bottom of bioreactor resulting in poor mixing. Considering mass transfer, pulp density and coal mixing, an optimal size of coal particle for the microbial coal desulfurization process seems to be about 500 $\mu\textrm{m}$.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.91-96
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• 2007

The saccharogenic liquid (SFW) obtained by the enzymatic saccharification of food wastes was used as a medium for production of bacterial cellulose (BC). The enzymatic saccharification of food wastes was carried out by the cultivation supernatant of Tricoderma inhamatum KSJ1 culture. Acetobacter xylinum KJ1 was employed for the BC production culture. Under the scaled-up aeration condition of 1.0 vvm, 5.64 g/L of BC was produced in 3 days cultivation in 50 L air circulation bioreactor using SFW medium with addition of 0.4% agar. The productivity was similar to that of 10 L air circulation bioreactor (5.84 g/L). This cultivation method with 50 L air circulation bioreactor decreasing shear stress and increasing oxygen transfer coefficient ($k_La$) was very useful in BC mass production. The physical properties, such as morphology, molecular weight, crystallinity, and tensile strength of BC produced by the static culture (A), the air circulation culture using 10 L bioreactor (B) and 50 L bioreactor (C) were investigated. The number average molecular weight of BCs produced under the different culture conditions (A-C) showed 2,578,000, 1,975,000, and 1,809,000, respectively. Tensile strength was 1.72 $kg/mm^2$, 1.19 $kg/mm^2$, and 1.18 $kg/mm^2$, respectively. All of the BCs had a form of cellulose I representing pure cellulose. The relative degree of crystallinity showed the range of 86.2$\sim$87.8%. BC production by the air circulation culture mode brought more favorable results in terms of the physical properties and its ease of scale-up. Therefore, it is expected that the new BC production method, the air circulation culture using SFW, would contribute greatly to BC-related manufacturing.