High gravity fermentation of sugarcane molasses to produce ethanol: Effect of nutrients

Fermentation efficiency of more than 85% was obtained by high gravity fermentation of 33–34°Bx (spec. gravity ≈1.134) molasses medium with certain nutrients, instead of generally employed medium containing ≈16% (w/v) total sugar (spec. gravity ≈1.090) for ethanol fermentation in distilleries to get maximum 80–85% conversion. The fermenting yeast, Saccharomyces, has varied capabilities, depending on the species and nutrition for fermenting the high solids medium. The fermentation period was reduced to 48 h; and the byproducts obtained were less in concentration, upon supplementation with nutrients (or osmoprotectants) like soy flour/wheat bran to the medium in the existing batch fermentation technology. This has been found partly due to improved yeast cell viability during fermentation.