ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Simultaneous production of citric acid and erythritol from crude glycerol by Yarrowia lipolytica Wratislavia K1

Waldemar Rymowicz, Anita Rywińska, and Witold Gładkowski

Department of Biotechnology and Food Microbiology, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, 503 75 Wrocław, Poland

E-mail: waldemar.rymowicz@wnoz.up.wroc.pl

Received: 26 March 2007  Revised: 4 October 2007  Accepted: 11 October 2007

Abstract: This study shows a possible microbial process for utilization of crude glycerol generated by the biodiesel industry for citric acid and erythritol production. Simultaneous production of citric acid and erythritol under nitrogen-limited conditions with glycerol as the carbon source was achieved with an acetate negative mutant of Y. lipolytica Wratislavia K1 in fed-batch cultivations. The effect of the initial glycerol concentration (from 30–180 g dm⁻³) on the citrate and erythritol production was investigated. As a result of the experiments, maximum citric acid production (110 g dm⁻³) and a very high amount of erythritol (81 g dm⁻³) were determined after 168 h of fed-batch cultivation with the initial glycerol concentration of 150 g dm⁻³ and the total glycerol concentration of 250 g dm⁻³. In addition, the citric acid to isocitric acid ratio of the products from this strain was 35.5:1.

Keywords: crude glycerol - citric acid - erythritol -  Yarrowia lipolytica  - fed-batch mode

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.2478/s11696-008-0018-y

Chemical Papers 62 (3) 239–246 (2008)