Abstract
Prompted by the exigencies of the First World War, the ability of certain bacteria to produce a mixture of organic solvents from carbohydrates was successfully harnessed as a source of acetone for use in the manufacture of cordite. From pilot plant studies conducted in an East London distillery, it was rapidly developed into what is now recognised as the first modern industrial fermentation process. In the post-war period, the process continued to thrive, especially in North America, as another of its products, butanol, became important in the burgeoning automobile industry. This paper describes the background to the development of acetone–butanol fermentation as an industrial process, its growth during the war years and how it contributed to the development of today’s biotechnology industry producing pharmaceuticals, food additives and many other microbial products.
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