A small‐scale investigation process for the Clostridium acetobutylicum production of butanol using high‐energy carbon heavy ion irradiation

Abstract

Applied heavy ion irradiation technology and butanol industrial practices as a whole have been used as a strategy for the development of an attractive alternative to petroleum-based fuels. Clostridium acetobutylicum (C. acetobutylicum) strains are well documented as fermentation strains for the production of biobutanol. However, it has been reported that solvent production inhibits the growth of these strains, and the accumulation of acetate also inhibits biomass synthesis, rendering the production of butanol from acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation processes economically challenging. In this manuscript, we propose the use of high-energy carbon heavy ion irradiation from the Heavy Ion Research Facility in Lanzhou (HIRFL) to obtain a culture with an increased butanol yield. Our findings suggest that the use of a high-energy 12C6+ heavy ion irradiation dose of 45 Gy with an energy of 135AMeV and ion pulses/levels of 106-108 favours ABE solvent production in an irradiated strain compared with the non-irradiated strain. The strategy reported in this manuscript may contribute to the development of a cost-effective butanol fermentation process that is competitive with similar fermentation processes.