Screening for ethanol-producing filamentous fungi

Of nineteen Aspergilli and ten Rhizopus strains examined for their ability to ferment simple sugars (glucose, xylose, and arabinose) as well as complex substrates (cellulose, oat-spelt xylan, corn fiber, and corn germ pressing), three Rhizopus strains were identified that could produce more than 31 g ethanol/l under anaerobic stress. By 72 h, glucose , xylose, cellobiose, and corn fiber were fermented with perspective yields of 100, 47, 80, and 40 percent, of theoretical.