Simultaneous production of hydrogen and bioflocculant by Enterobacter sp. BY-29

Hydrogen and a bioflocculant could be produced simultaneously by anaerobic culture of Enterobacter sp. BY-29. For production of hydrogen and the bioflocculant by cell culture of the bacterium in batch cultures, cultivation at 37 °C in a medium containing glucose as a carbon source and Polypepton as a nitrogen source was found to be suitable. In continuous production of hydrogen and the bioflocculant by cell culture or immobilized cells of the bacterium, the hydrogen production rate and hydrogen yield by the immobilized cells on porous glass beads in stirred and column reactors were higher than those by the cell culture in a stirred reactor. However, production of the bioflocculant by the cell culture was superior to that by the immobilized cells in continuous production.