title: Simple and robust monitoring of ethanol fermentations by capillary electrophoresis.
abstract: Free-solution capillary electrophoresis (CE), or capillary zone electrophoresis, with direct UV detection was used for the first time for the determination of mono- and disaccharides, sugar alcohols, and ethanol in fermentation broths. Sample preparation proved to be minimal: no derivatization or specific sample purification was needed. The CE conditions can be adapted to the type of fermentation by simply altering the background electrolyte (BGE). KOH (130 mM) or NaOH (130 mM) as the BGE led to the fastest analysis time when monitoring simple fermentations. A mixture of 65 mM NaOH and 65 mM LiOH led to a 19% improvement in resolution for a complex mixture of carbohydrates. Quantification of a simple carbohydrate fermentation by CE showed values in close agreement with that of high-performance anion exchange chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) on a cation exchange resin. For complex fermentations, quantification of carbohydrates by HPLC and CE led to similar results, whereas CE requires an injection volume of only 10-20 nL. Analysis of an ethanol fermentation of hydrolyzed plant fiber demonstrated the robustness of the separation and detection of carbohydrates, as well as ethanol. Ethanol determination is achieved by coupling the CE method to pressure mobilization, using the same instrument and the same sample.
authors.affiliation: University of Western Sydney, Australian Centre for Research on Separation Sciences (ACROSS), School of Science and Health, Parramatta Campus, Penrith NSW, Australia.|University of Western Sydney, School of Science and Health, Hawkesbury Campus, Penrith NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: James D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Oliver
authors.affiliation: University of Western Sydney, Australian Centre for Research on Separation Sciences (ACROSS), School of Science and Health, Parramatta Campus, Penrith NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Adam T
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Sutton
authors.affiliation: Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science (ACROSS), School of Physical Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart TAS, Australia.
authors.forename: Naama
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Karu
authors.affiliation: University of Western Sydney, School of Science and Health, Hawkesbury Campus, Penrith NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Phillips
authors.affiliation: University of Western Sydney, School of Science and Health, Hawkesbury Campus, Penrith NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Markham
authors.affiliation: University of Western Sydney, School of Science and Health, Hawkesbury Campus, Penrith NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Peiris
authors.affiliation: Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science (ACROSS), School of Physical Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart TAS, Australia.
authors.forename: Emily F
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Hilder
authors.affiliation: University of Western Sydney, Australian Centre for Research on Separation Sciences (ACROSS), School of Science and Health, Parramatta Campus, Penrith NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Patrice
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Castignolles
mesh_terms: D018533:Biomass; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D002852:Chromatography, Ion Exchange; D019075:Electrophoresis, Capillary / Q000379:methods*; D000431:Ethanol / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism*; D005285:Fermentation; D029747:Opuntia; D010843:Pichia; D017355:Zymomonas
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol
keywords: capillary electrophoresis; carbohydrate; fermentation; high-performance anion exchange chromatography (HPAEC); high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC); resolution