title: Comparison of three screening methods to select mixed-microbial inoculum for mixed-acid fermentations.
abstract: Using a mixed culture of microorganisms, the carboxylate platform converts biomass into hydrocarbons and chemicals. To develop a method that identifies the highest performing inoculum for carboxylate fermentations, five bacterial communities were screened and ranked by three fermentation performance tests: (1) 30-day batch screen, (2) 28-day continuum particle distribution model (CPDM), and (3) 5-month continuous countercurrent fermentation trains. To screen numerous inocula sources, these tests were used sequentially in an aseptic environment. For the batch-fermentation screen, Inoculum 1 achieved the highest conversion. For the CPDM evaluation, the operating map for Inoculum 1 had the highest performance. For the continuous countercurrent fermentation, the train resulting from Inoculum 1 was among the best performers. This study suggests that the three screens are a useful and predictive method for choosing optimal inocula sources. The bacterial community with optimal performance in these three screens could be considered for use in commercial-scale fermentations.
authors: Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 78453, USA. golubkw@gmail.com
authors: Kristina W
authors: KW
authors: Golub
authors: Andrea K
authors: AK
authors: Forrest
authors: Melinda E
authors: ME
authors: Wales
authors: Amy Jo M
authors: AJ
authors: Hammett
authors: Julia L
authors: JL
authors: Cope
authors: Heather H
authors: HH
authors: Wilkinson
authors: Mark T
authors: MT
authors: Holtzapple
mesh_terms: D002264:Carboxylic Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D005285:Fermentation; D006358:Hot Temperature; D059013:Microbial Consortia; D054712:Salinity
chemical_list: D002264:Carboxylic Acids