• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.329-334
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• 1992

For the photoproduction of molecular hydrogen by photosynthetic bacteria in outdoor conditions, we constructed automatically controlled semi-continuous culture system. When the amount of hydrogen gas produced can be measured by a gas meter with a pulse generator, the same amount of substrate consumed for hydrogen production could be supplied by micro pump related with timers. Using the apparatus, we examined hydrogen production with immobilized cells of Rhodopseudomonas sPhaeroides B6 in outdoor conditions. In spite of severe fluctuation of weather and illumination, the culture was maintained under good control with regard to hydrogen productivity. It was possible to automate the semi-continuous outdoor culture of photosynthetic bacteria for hydrogen production.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.79-84
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• 1992

The Photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodopseudomonas sphaeroides strain B6 was irnmobilized on agar gel. The optimum concentration of agar for hydrogen production was 2% (w/v). Maximum rates of hydrogen production by immobilized (300 ml of gel; 2.85 rng dry cells/ml) and free cells (1l culture; 0.87 mg dry cells/ml) were 47.5 and 48.0 ml/hr/culture, respectively. However, when both cultures were fed by 10 mmoles of lactate as limited electron donor at the later period of incubation, the activity of hydrogen production by free cells was significantly decreased but, immobilized cells continued hydrogen production with almost the same initial rate. Wc examined hydrogen production by immobilized cells of strain B6 under periodic illumination for 12 hr-intervals. When the culture was periodically fed by basal medium containing 9.3 rnmoles of DL-lactate and 1.86 mmoles of L-glutamate as consumed electron donor and nitrogen source, respectively, for every one liter of hydrogen produced, hydrogen was evolved continuously with the average rate of 510 ml/day/300 ml gel (2.9 rng dry cellslml) during the incubation time for 228 hr.