No abstract

The diluted ethanol solutions and fermentation broth (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) were separated by membrane distillation (MD). Hydrophobic macroporous (pore size 0.2 μm) capillary polypropylene membranes, Accurel PP V8/2 HF and Accurel PP S6/2, were used for these studies. The MD process can be successfully applied to remove the volatile components from the fermentation broth. Besides ethanol, propionic and acetic acids were moved from the broth to the distillate. Therefore, the course of the fermentation carried out in a membrane distillation bioreactor considerably accelerate its rate and increase the efficiency by a selective removal of fermentation products. It was found that the broth subjected to the separation did not affect the hydrophobic properties of the polypropylene membrane assembled in the MD modules.

Ethanol production in a bioreactor with integrated membrane distillation (MD) module has been investigated. A hydrophobic capillary polypropylene membrane (Accurel PP V8/2 HF), with an external/internal diameter ratio, d out/d in = 8.6 mm/5.5 mm and pore size 0.2 μm, was used in these studies. The products (mainly ethanol and acetic acid) formed during the fermentation of sugar with Saccharomyces cerevisiae inhibited the process. These products were selectively removed from the fermentation broth by the MD process, which increased the efficiency of the conversion of sugar to alcohol from 0.45 g to 0.5 g EtOH per g of fermented sucrose. The bioreactor efficiency also increased by almost 30 %. Separation of alcohol by the MD generates a higher yield of ethanol in the permeate than in the broth. The enrichment coefficient amounted to 4-8, and depended on the ethanol concentration in the broth. The separated solutions did not wet the membrane in use for 2500 h of the MD experiments and the retention of inorganic solutes was close to 100 %.