Aerobic Fermentation Services
BackgroundService ProcedureOur AdvantagesCase StudyFAQs
Background
Overview of Aerobic Fermentation
Aerobic fermentation is basically the kind of microbial brewing that happens when oxygen is around. It's all about using certain carbs as the starting material and breaking them down with the help of enzymes. You need plenty of oxygen to whip up stuff like organic acids, sugars, sulfates, and alcohols. Unlike the typical way cells do respiration, this type of fermentation is more about making new biomass than saving energy. It does this by putting the brakes on some energy processes, which lets the cells grow super fast.
Recent tech breakthroughs in aerobic fermentation focus on improving how we deliver and mix in oxygen and keeping cells dense by boosting the oxygen transfer rate (OTR). When you're working with big bioreactors, the surface area compared to the volume gets a whole lot smaller. This might slow things down, so getting the oxygen just right is key, especially when you're churning out secondary metabolites on a large scale.
In the industrial world, aerobic fermentation often takes place in stirred tank fermenters. These setups allow you to inoculate, aerate, and mix up your sterile liquid medium. You can also monitor it with sensors, regulate the temperature, and add or take out samples without messing things up. A classic example is when acetic acid bacteria (AAB) turn sugars and alcohols into vinegar using oxidative fermentation.
Fig. 1. Yeast evolves alcoholic fermentation: crabtree effect results in lower biomass production. (Dashko, et al., 2014)
Applications of Aerobic Fermentation
Aerobic fermentation is really a key player in a bunch of industries. It's used everywhere—from making food to producing energy and even cleaning up waste.
Baking: Yeast adds sugar and during aerobic fermentation releases carbon dioxide that gives rise to porous, frothy bread.
Brewing: Brewing of beer and wine also involves aerobic yeast fermentation.
Food preservation: Some good bacteria neutralize the bad bacteria, keeping food fresher for longer.
Antibiotic production: Medicines like penicillin and streptomycin come about thanks to aerobic fermentation.
Vitamin production: Vitamin C gets made through the "two-step biofermentation method", a slick aerobic process.
Bio fertilizer: Aerial fermentation converts organic waste into a fertilizer that is potent.
Biopesticides: Biopesticides are prepared through aerobic fermentation of microorganisms.
Bioethanol: It is possible to also use agricultural husks to produce this rarefied energy as aerobic fermentation turns this "husk" into ethanol to create this renewable bioenergy.
Biodiesel: The primary components of biodiesel are fatty acids, etc., that can be made by fermentation in microbes.
- Environmental protection and waste treatment
Wastewater treatment: Wastewater from sewage plants is sterilized with aerobic bacteria to clean the water.
Composting: Composting entails fermentation of different bacteria to obtain useful fertilizer, and pages of aerobic bacteria are involved.
Chemicals and fuels: Certain bacteria use industrial waste gas components like CO, CO2, H2, and O2 to produce chemicals and fuels.
- Microbial fermentation technology
Solid fermentation: Crops serve as raw materials, and using aerobic fermentation, mycelium products are made for functional foods and health items.
Liquid deep fermentation: The process involves deep liquid culture to obtain mycelium and broth, which are used to extract goodies like polysaccharides and polypeptides.
Examples of Aerobic Microbes
In industrial fermentation, aerobic fungi and bacteria often be employed to yield various microbial ferment products. Here are some of the aerobic microbes that we routinely work with:
Aspergillus: Aspergillus oryzae, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus terreus
Mucor: Mucor piriformis
Rhizopus: Rhizopus stolonifer
Monascus: Monascus ruber, Monascus purpureus
Acetobacter
Lactobacillus
Corynebacterium: Corynebacterium glutamicum
Bacillus: Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus licheniformis
Enterobacteriaceae: Citrobacter freundii
Creative BioMart Microbe is focused on providing the most recent aerobic fermentation services, from food and drug manufacturing to bioenergy manufacturing and other supporting environmental and agricultural markets. We have a ferment for you: whether you want to develop exclusive fermented foods, develop essential medicinal ingredients, convert farm effluent into biofuel, or invent waste-treatment and fertiliser technology that's sustainable, we have one for you. You can contact us to know more!
Service Procedure
Service Details
Diversity Mining and Activity Screening of Microbial Resources
Our company has advanced strain separation technology, which can efficiently separate "difficult to culture" microorganisms, obtain 5-15 times more microbial species than traditional methods, and provide rare and unique microbial resources for aerobic fermentation. Combined with our unique screening technology, based on the principle of ecological adaptability, we enrich the target bacterial community and screen strains and bacterial communities with key biological activities in high throughput to ensure that the microorganisms used in the aerobic fermentation process have the highest activity and efficiency.
Customized Fermentation Equipment and Processes
Microorganisms that require aerobic fermentation are particularly sensitive to fermentation environmental parameters. We have designed and developed new fermentation equipment and processes to accurately meet the needs of different strains for oxygen demand, moisture, pH value, carbon source, nitrogen source and trace nutrients, and produce high-quality strains through large-scale fermentation to provide customers with personalized aerobic fermentation solutions.
Precise Process Control and Optimization
From fermentation design to fermentation monitoring, we introduce big data models to accurately analyze the performance of each link. We use precise rate control strategies to optimize growth conditions, increase product yields, maintain fermentation stability, and save energy and resources. Through segmented control fermentation processes, we meet the needs of different fermentation stages, thereby improving fermentation efficiency and product quality.
Our Advantages
- Cutting-Edge Bioreactor Tech. We're all about using the latest bioreactor tech to keep our aerobic fermentation fast and top-notch. This means you get products that meet your need for efficiency and a greener planet.
- Stringent Quality Control. We have our own quality control system, from the raw materials to the final products we take it through each stage so that the final product is up to the mark.
- Environmental Sustainability. We're big on being green. Our fermentation process is all about cutting down waste and emissions, helping your company hit those eco-friendly goals.
- Easy Communication. No matter the size of your team, we will provide you with direct contact, simplify communication, and ensure that your project can run smoothly.
Case Study
Case Study 1: Optimizing E. coli for chemical biosynthesis without the TCA cycle.
The tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle is crucial for the aerobic growth of heterotrophic bacteria. However, reducing TCA cycle activity can theoretically decrease carbon loss and enhance chemical biosynthesis. In this study, researchers engineered an E. coli strain lacking a functional TCA cycle to serve as a flexible platform for chemical production. Through adaptive laboratory evolution, they restored its aerobic growth in minimal medium despite TCA cycle deficiency, pinpointing succinate dehydrogenase inactivation as a key evolutionary adaptation. The limited supply of succinyl-CoA was identified as a growth bottleneck, which they overcame by substituting endogenous succinyl-CoA-dependent enzymes. This engineered strain achieved high yields of four distinct products, showcasing its potential for biotechnological applications and providing new insights into the metabolic role of the TCA cycle in E. coli.
Fig. 2. Intracellular succinyl-CoA level in TCA cycle-deficient E. coli strains comparing to strain BW25113. (Zhou, et al., 2024)
Case Study 2: Enhancing animal feed with Bacillus subtilis fermentation.
When it comes to using citric acid by-products in animal feed, tackling sustainability is key. But, throw in some Bacillus subtilis I9 for fermentation, and you can really up their nutritional game. In this experiment, researchers took 50 g of citric acid by-products, mixed them with 200 mL of sterile water in 500 mL Erlenmeyer flasks, and then either left them alone or added B. subtilis I9 at 107 CFU/mL. Researches let them chill at 37°C with a good shake for up to 96 hours. The B. subtilis did its thing, really ramping up Bacillus density and giving CMCase activity a big boost—hitting 9.77 U/mL at 72 hours in. After 96 hours, they saw a big drop in stuff like crude fiber, hemicellulose, cellulose, and overall energy, while protein and amino acids shot up. Non-starch polysaccharides were cut down by 24.37%, with less galactose, glucose, and uronic acid around. They even spotted some cool changes in the cell walls of citric acid by-products under a scanning electron microscope.
Fig. 3. Enzyme CMCase activity during inoculation after 96 h. (Tanpong, et al., 2024)
Case Study 3: Phosphorus slag as a greenhouse gas mitigator in sewage sludge composting.
In the process of sewage sludge composting, greenhouse gas emissions are inevitable. This study explored how adding industrial waste phosphorus slag (PS) to sludge affects these emissions and the compost's humification. Here PS not only raised the compost temperature and prolonged the high-heat phase but also significantly cut N2O emissions by 68.9% with 10% PS and by 88.6% with 15% PS. The addition of PS enhanced microbial diversity by improving sludge porosity, creating a more aerobic environment. This shift favored the growth of beneficial bacteria like Firmicutes and Chloroflexi and reduced the pathogenic bacterium Dokdonella. Thus, using PS in sludge composting is an effective and economically viable waste management approach with great potential for application.
Fig. 4. Changes in total humic acid carbon (THA-C). (Xu, et al., 2024)
FAQs
Q: Why does fermentation state matter?
A: In the fermentation process, fermentation temperature and the amount of oxygen is very important. It maintains microbes so that you get a high quality product at the end.
Q: How to manage oxygen during aerobic fermentation?
A: Oxygen supply is normally controlled through a robot aerobic fermentation unit. It circulates air and composts compost in a tank so there's plenty of oxygen. It speeds up organic material deterioration by automating processes.
References:
- Dashko S.; et al. Why, when, and how did yeast evolve alcoholic fermentation?. FEMS Yeast Res. 2014;14(6):826-832.
- Zhou H.; et al. A citric acid cycle-deficient Escherichia coli as an efficient chassis for aerobic fermentations. Nat Commun. 2024;15(1):2372.
- Tanpong S.; et al. Citric acid by-product fermentation by Bacillus subtilis I9: A promising path to sustainable animal feed. Vet Sci. 2024;11(10):484.
- Xu M.; et al. Mitigating greenhouse gas emission and enhancing fermentation by phosphorus slag addition during sewage sludge composting. J Environ Manage. Published online October 7, 2024.
