FERMENTATION

Etymology

 The word "ferment" is derived from the Latin

verb fervere, which means to boil. It is thought to
have been first used in the late 14th century
in alchemy, but only in a broad sense. It was not
used in the modern scientific sense until around
1600.
Fermentation
 It is the chemical transformation of organic substances
into simpler compounds by the action of enzymes,
complex organic catalysts, which are produced by
microorganisms such as molds, yeasts, or bacteria.
Enzymes act by hydrolysis, a process of breaking down
or predigesting complex organic molecules to form
smaller (and in the case of foods, more easily digestible)
compounds and nutrients.
Fermentation

 Conversion of sugar to alcohol using yeast.

 Chemical conversion of carbohydrates into alcohols or

acids.
 The process is often used to produce wine and beer
 Also employed in preservation to create lactic acid in sour
foods such as pickled cucumbers, kimchi and yogurt.
 The science of fermentation is known as zymology.
History of Fermentation
 1700s. Antoine Lavoisier – fermentation is just a simple
chemical reaction and micro organisms have nothing to
do with fermentation.
 1837
Charles Cagniard de la Tour, Theodor
Schwann and Friedrich Traugott Kutzing independently
published papers concluding, as a result of microscopic
investigations, that yeast is a living organism that
reproduces by budding.
 Louis Pasteur
 In1860, the chemistry of fermentation was first
investigated.
 Hecalled the process la vie sans air, or life
without air
 Heshowed that fermentation is directly caused
by the life processes of minute organisms through
understanding how these microorganisms
function and recognizing the varieties of
microorganisms.
 • He demonstrated that
bacteria
cause souring in milk, a
process formerly
thought to be merely a
chemical change, and
his work in identifying
the role of
microorganisms in food
spoilage led to the
process
of pasteurization.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

 In 1897, Hans and Eduard Beuchner discovered
that fermentation could occur in a cell-free
extract of yeast.
 This work led to the elucidation of the enzymes
involved.
Conversion Processes in
Fermentation
Oxidation
Reduction
Esterification
Hydrolysis
ATP production
Redox Reactions
Redox Reactions

Ethanol  Acetic Acid via Acetic Acid Bacteria

(AAB) (oxidation)
AAB are airborne and are ubiquitous in nature.
They can be isolated from the nectar of flowers and from
damaged fruits
In these liquids, they grow as a surface film due to their
aerobic nature and active motility
The growth of AAB in wine can be suppressed through
effective sanitation, by complete exclusion of air from wine in
storage or by the use of moderate amounts of sulfur dioxide in
the wine as a preservative
Hydrolysis (biological)

 Cleavage of biomolecules where water is

consumed for the reaction to proceed
 When a carbohydrate is broken into its
component sugar molecules by hydrolysis
(example: sucrose  glucose and fructose
and ATP production)
 Generally, hydrolysis is a step in the
degradation of a substance
Hydrolysis of Sucrose

HCl
 C12H22O11 + H2O C6H12O6 (D-Glucose) +
C6H12O6 (D-Fructose)
 Structural isomers
 When sucrose is hydrolyzed by HCl in alcoholic
medium, mixture of glucose and fructose is
obtained.
Esterification

 Productionof esters from carboxylic acids

and alcohols
 Can only occur in the presence of an acid
catalyst and heat
 Formswater as a side
product/dehydration reaction
Esterification
Basic Pre-requisites of a
Fermentation Process
 Microorganism
 Forms desired end product
 Readily propagated
 Capable of maintaining biological uniformity, giving
predictable yields

 Economical raw materials for substrate

 Starch or other sugars
Basic Pre-requisites of a
Fermentation Process
 Acceptable Yields

 Rapid Fermentation

 A product that is readily recovered and purified

Factors Impacting the Fermentation
Process
 pH
 Temperature
 Aeration-Agitation
 Pure-culture fermentation/Mixed culture fermentation
 Availability of nutrients
Components of A Fermentation
Process
 The formulation of media to be used in culturing the
organism
 Sterilization of media, fermenters and ancillary
equipment
 Production of an active, pure culture in sufficient
quantity to inoculate the production vessel
 Growth of organism under optimum conditions for
product conversion
 Extraction and purification of products
 Treatment and disposal of wastes
Products in Fermentation

PRODUCT ORGANISM USE

Ethanol Saccharomyces Industrial Solvents,

cerevisiae Beverages
Glycerol Saccharomyces Production of
cerevisiae Explosives
Lactic Acid Lactobacillus Food and
bulgaricus pharmaceuticals
Acetone and Clostridium Solvents
butanol acetobutylicum
Alpha-Amylase Bacillus subtilis Starch hydrolysis
Most Common Products in
Fermentation
 Ethanol Alcohol
 (Industrial,
Denatured, Tax Paid, Specially
Denatured)
 Lactic Acid
Alcohols

 Used in the production of formaldehyde

 Fuel additives
 Solvents and precursors to solvents
 Used in plasticizers
 Precursors to detergents
Denatured Alcohol

 Also known as methylated spirits

 Ethanol that has additives that make it poisonous, bad
tasting, foul smelling and/or nauseating and sometimes
dyed, to discourage recreational consumption
 Used as solvent, fuel for alcohol burners
 Denaturing does not alter the ethanol molecule; rather,
ethanol is mixed with other chemicals to form an
undrinkable solution, for many of these solutions, there is
no practical way to separate the alcohol from its
components
Tax Paid Alcohol

 The alcoholic beverage industry is highly taxed

(from excise tax at both state and federal levels
and up to retailers such as bars and restaurants)
 In the United States, more than one-third of the
shelf price of most alcoholic beverages are
allocated for tax.
Absolute Alcohol

 Common name for ethanol (low water content)

 To qualify as absolute, it should contain at least
95% ethanol
 Not intended for human consumption
 Mixed with gasoline to produce gasohol
Health Benefits of Fermentation

 Fermented foods are rich in probiotic bacteria;

helps in digestion, absorption and assimilation of
nutrients
 Strengthens immune system
 Retains enzymes, vitamins and other nutrients
that are usually destroyed in food processing
 Improves taste