Novel supplements enhance the ethanol production in cane molasses fermentation by recycling yeast cell

Summary Eight alcohol producing yeast strains were screened for their sedimentation rates and it was found thatS.cerevisiae NCIM 3526 was a better flocculant strain. This strain was employed in cane molasses fermentation with yeast recycle, supplemented with skim milk, chitin and fungal mycelium individually or in combination, at 30°C, using fermentable sugars 15%. On the completion of ten 16 h cycles, 20–30% more ethanol was produced in presence of these supplements and the efficiency of the process was improved from 66 to 87%.