Continuous fermentation apparatus and multi-step continuous fermentation process using the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9920290-B2
Application number	US-201214905873-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 26, 2012
Priority date	Oct 27, 2011
Publication date	Mar 20, 2018
Grant date	Mar 20, 2018

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a continuous fermentation apparatus and a multi-step continuous fermentation process using the same.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus for performing a continuous fermentation process of a sugar mixture, the apparatus comprising:
a U-shaped fermentation unit including a downward fermentation tube, an upward fermentation tube, and a channel connecting the downward fermentation tube and the upward fermentation tube;
a source input unit provided at an upper part of the downward fermentation tube configured to supply the sugar mixture into the downward fermentation tube;
the channel connecting a lower part of the downward fermentation tube with a lower part of the upward fermentation tube and configured to pass the sugar mixture fermented in the downward fermentation tube into the lower part of the upward fermentation tube; and
a microbial cell collection unit formed on the lower part of the upward fermentation tube configured to collect microbial cells from the sugar mixture;
wherein the sugar mixture flows continuously downwardly through the downward fermentation tube from the source input unit and upwardly through the upward fermentation tube from the connecting channel.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising at least one additional U-shaped fermentation unit operatively connected to the U-shaped fermentation unit.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the sugar mixture is extracted from a source selected from the group consisting of marine algae, cellulosic biomass, and the combination thereof.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the sugar mixture is selected from the group consisting of glucose, galactose, sucrose, xylose, and the combinations thereof.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , further including a collection unit configured to collect microbial cells and precipitates on the lower part of the downward fermentation tube.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the downward fermentation tube and the upward fermentation tube further includes at least one impeller and at least one screen.

7. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the microbial cells collected by the microbial cell collection unit of the upward fermentation tube are supplied into the downward fermentation tube to be recycled.

8. A continuous fermentation method for fermenting sugar mixture using an apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7 , the method comprising;
supplying the sugar mixture into the source input unit of the downward fermentation tube; and
impelling the sugar mixture downwardly through the downward fermentation tube and upwardly through the upward fermentation tube.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein microbial cells are collected from the upward fermentation tube and supplied into the downward fermentation tube to be recycled.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the step of impelling the sugar mixture is repeated at least one more time according to the amount of sugar contained in the sugar mixture.

Assignees

• Biol Systems Co Ltd
• Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine

Inventors

• Shin Myung Kyo
• Shin Jin Hyuk
• Kim In Sik
• Im Dongjoong

Classifications

• C12P7/14

  Multiple stages of fermentation; Multiple types of microorganisms or re-use of microorganisms · CPC title

• C12M23/34

  Internal compartments or partitions · CPC title

• Y02E50/16

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• C12M23/58

  Reaction vessels connected in series or in parallel (combinations of bioreactors with other apparatus, C12M43/00) · CPC title

• C12M21/12 Primary

  for producing fuels or solvents (C12M21/04 takes precedence; liquid carbonaceous fuels C10L1/00, solid fuels C10L5/00) · CPC title