Factos affecting the production of butanol and acetone by Clostridium acetobutylicum

Owing to the growing interest in the production of fuels and chemicals from biomass the well-know butanol-acetone fermentation as carried out by Clostridium acetobutylicum has been intensely studied again in recent years. Several solvent-yielding fermentation processes were established which are operated by using batch cultures or continuous cultures. 1 could be shown that under conditions of phosphate limitation an asporogenous mutant of C. acetobutylicum establishes itself in a chemostat which produces the solvents continuously. Attempts have been made to change the butanol/acetone ratio in favor of butanol production. A corresponding shift of the product spectrum can be achieved by carbon monoxide addition to the head space of the fermentation (B.H. Kim et al., App. Envioron. Microbiol. 48, 764-770 1984) or by iron limitation. Progress has been made in understanding the mechanism underlying the shift from acid to solvent prodcction. Experimental results are in agreement with the view that intracellular accumulation of acetic and butyric acid results in a shortage of phosphate and coenzyme A. This shortage may serve then as signal for the synthesis of the enzymes involved in the formation of acetone and butanol.