Ethanol production from paper sludge by immobilized Zymomonas mobilis

Abstract

During past decades, the considerable efforts have been made to utilize lignocellulose as biomass feedstock for the optimal production of bio-ethanol as an alternative source of fuel. In this work, the effective bioconversion of paper sludge to ethanol was investigated by using Zymomonas mobilis NBRC 13756. Major components of the raw paper sludge were carbohydrates and ash. Fermentation utilizing strains of Z. mobilis instead of traditional yeasts and the use of simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) process have been proposed due to their high ethanol yields with cost-effectiveness. Free cells of Z. mobilis resulted in no ethanol production even after 24 h of incubation because cells’ growth was inhibited by metal ions contained in the paper sludge. The application of SSF with Ca-alginate-immobilized cells of Z. mobilis was performed and 18 g/L of ethanol was obtained after 48 h of incubation at an initial paper sludge concentration of 200 g/L. In addition, the repeated batch fermentation of Ca-alginate-immobilized Z. mobilis cells was attempted for producing ethanol up to run 4. Our work suggests that Ca-alginate-immobilized cells of Z. mobilis could effectively produce ethanol from paper sludge not only under the batch fermentation but also under the repeated batch fermentation.