Dark Fermentation for Biomanufacturing
A special issue of Fermentation (ISSN 2311-5637). This special issue belongs to the section "Industrial Fermentation".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 934
Special Issue Editors
Interests: enzyme engineering; green solvent; biomass pretreatment; feedstock logistics; fermentation; modeling
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The increasing global demand for renewable and sustainable energy sources has encouraged researchers to develop efficient and economically viable biofuel production technologies. Lignocellulosic biomass, which is derived from agricultural residues, forest residues and dedicated energy crops, represents a promising feedstock for biofuel production due to it being abundant and renewable. In addition, organic waste materials, such as food waste, yard waste and biosolids, can be used alone or co-processed with lignocellulosic biomass during dark fermentation.
Dark fermentation involves the anaerobic degradation of complex organic compounds present in biomass materials via a consortium of microorganisms. These microorganisms, which are typically a mix of bacteria, archaea and fungi, work together to break down the complex structure of the biomass into simpler compounds, such as sugars, organic acids and alcohols.
The process takes place in the dark, hence its name: “dark fermentation”. It relies on a series of different microorganisms’ metabolic pathways. Initially, hydrolytic microorganisms break down the complex polymers, e.g., cellulose, hemicellulose, starch, lipids and lignin, into their constituent sugars and other organic compounds. This step makes the biomass more accessible for subsequent fermentation.
Next, acidogenic microorganisms convert the released sugars and organic acids into volatile fatty acids (VFAs), such as acetic acid, propionic acid and butyric acid, via fermentation. VFAs are valuable intermediates that can be further converted into various products. Finally, acetogenic microorganisms convert VFAs into acetate and hydrogen gas (H2) via acetogenesis.
Dark fermentation offers several advantages. Firstly, a wide range of abundant and waste biomass feedstocks can be utilized, thereby reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and addressing waste management challenges. Secondly, it produces valuable end products such as hydrogen gas, which is a clean and high-energy fuel, and volatile fatty acids produced via arrested methanogenesis that can be used as precursors to synthesize chemicals and biofuels.
Furthermore, dark fermentation can be integrated with other bioprocesses, such as anaerobic digestion or microbial electrolysis, to enhance the overall process efficiency and product yields.
Ongoing research and technological advancements in this field continue to expand our understanding of dark fermentation, paving the way for its commercial implementation in the future. Original research manuscripts and reviews related to this field will be welcomed.
Dr. Jian Shi
Dr. Drew Wang
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- dark fermentation
- lignocellulosic biomass
- biofuels
- microbial fermentation
- metabolic pathways
- process optimization
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