Produção de ácido lático a partir do bagaço da cana de açúcar / Production of lactic acid from sugar cane bagasse

Giselle de Arruda Rodrigues

Production of chemical compounds from lignocellulose residues has attracted attention of actual world society. The search for productive alternatives fossil fuels non-dependent, the use of renewable resources and sustainability are the main reasons. In this work, lactic acid production by fermentation of sugars obtained from sugarcane bagasse, essentially glucose and xylose, was studied. From several strains of lactic acid bactéria and using a qualitative methodology, 26 microorganisms were selected for shaking flasks and bioreactor tests. The best results were obtained in fermentations using B. coagulans 162, reaching yield of 0,95 and volumetric productivity of 2,13 g L-1 h-1 in simple batch and medium containing glucose, xylose and arabinose. In continuous feeding, the cultivation medium reached 105 g of lactic acid per liter. The treatment effects of hydrotermal hydrolysis and steam explosion of sugarcane bagasse were also studied. It was verified acetic acid, furfural and hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) formation and glucose, xylose and arabinose release. Bagasse fibers were photographed using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), before and after termal treatment for visualization of modification in the arrangement of the original structure. Bagasse in natura, containing approximately 43% of cellulose, 28% of hemicellulose and 14% of lignina, was submitted to hydroythermal treatment (220°C/5min) followed by hydrolysis with the enzymes Cellulase, Cellobiase and Xylanase. The obtained hydrolysate of cellulose and hemicellulose fractions contained mainly glucose and xylose, and was used as Catbon source in the cultivation medium. In the fermentation was obtained yield of 0,96 and volumetric productivity equal to 4,11 g L-1. The hydrolysate obtained from steam exploded bagasse was tested. Constituted basically by hemicellulose fraction, the hydrolysate contained mainly xylose. It was reached yield of 0,90 and volumetric productivity equal to 0,225 g L-1 h-1. Later studies have showed that strains adaptation in cultivation medium containing only pentose (xylose and arabinose) reduces the lag phase resulting in increase of productivity. Inhibition studies on synthetic medium allowed to evaluate the effect that each compound caused individually on cell replication and on lactic acid production. Acetic acid was the compound that showed the higher inhibitory effect. In the studied range, furfural and HMF showed similar behaviour becoming inhibitory in concentrations above 1,5 g L-1 on biomass production. The same effect was not observed on lactic acid production. Inhibition by xylose was also investigated. Maximum yield, equal to 0,95, was obtained when 140 g L-1 of initial sugar were used. Concentrations above 150 g L-1 showed to be inhibitory to the microbial growth. Sugarcane bagasse showed to be a promissor substrate to biotechnologic production of lactic acid, a chemical with high added value and versatile applications. The selected microorganism, the bacteria Bacillus coagulans 162, showed to be a robust strain, with relative tolerance against inhibitors and able to convert homofermentatively the pentose present in hemicellulose hydrolysate, desirable feature in productive and economic terms.

Produção de ácido lático a partir do bagaço da cana de açúcar / Production of lactic acid from sugar cane bagasse

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