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Evaluation of the Impact of Temperature on Ethanol Production from Molasses using Saccharomyces cerevisiae to Determine the Optimal Temperature for Maximum Yield
Esele Stephen and Byaruhanga Ivan
ABSTRACT
Molasses is a viscous by-product of refining sugarcane into sugar, that has been considered as a cheap source of raw material for industrial ethanol production. The experiment was designed to determine the optimal temperature for ethanol production using a specific fermentation process. Fermentation experiments were conducted using a standardized procedure with varying temperature conditions. Samples were collected and analyzed to measure ethanol concentration at each temperature point. In this study, the ability of ethanol production from molasses using Saccharomyces cerevisiae was investigated at different temperatures (32°C, 34°C, and 36°C) on the scales of 500 ml, 2000 ml molasses solution, and 34°C was selected as the appropriate temperature to carry out the fermentation scale at 5000 ml of molasses solution. Experiments were carried out in molasses with an initial sugar concentration of 85 Brix, pH of 4.5, and fermented for 3 days (72 hours). In the fermentation of 500 ml of molasses solution, Ethanol concentrations of 8.6, 9.4, and 7.5% (v/v) were achieved at 32, 34, and 36, respectively. The results of the ethanol production at 34°C from 2000 ml of molasses solution showed that the ethanol concentration was 9.7% (v/v), the level was high compared to other treatments at two other temperature ranges. Ethanol concentrations of 8.8% and 8.2% (v/v) were obtained at 32 and 36, respectively. From the results, 34°C was selected as the optimal temperature to carry out the fermentation experiment at the scale of 5000 ml of molasses solution with an ethanol concentration of 9.8% (v/v) was achieved. The study found that the optimal temperature for Saccharomyces cerevisiae to make ethanol at the pH of 4.5 was 34°C, yielding the highest amount of ethanol at 9.8% (v/v).
Keywords: Ethanol, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Molasses, Fermentation, Temperature
CITE AS: Esele Stephen and Byaruhanga Ivan (2024).Evaluation of the Impact of Temperature on Ethanol Production from Molasses using Saccharomyces cerevisiae to Determine the Optimal Temperature for Maximum Yield. INOSR APPLIED SCIENCES 12(2):33-42. https://doi.org/10.59298/INOSRAS/2024/12.2.334200