Production of lactic acid from paper sludge by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation.

Production of lactic acid from paper sludge has been performed by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF). The SSF process design was based on experimental data obtained from cellulose hydrolysis and fermentation. The SSF process was employed to avoid an excessively dense solution when the sludge content of the feed was higher than 15%; this is one of several benefits of SSF. The enzyme system used for hydrolysis of paper sludge for production of glucose was optimized. CMCase and beta-glucosidase with activities of 2.5 and 10 U mL(-1), respectively, were found to be optimum for hydrolyzing 5% sludge. In batch SSF 16 g L(-1) lactic acid was produced from 5% paper sludge with an yield of 80%. Paper sludge which served as a feed seemed to have a buffering effect during SSF, probably because of the inorganic ash component in the sludge. The final product concentration by SSF was observed to be limited by the cellulose content of the system, which can probably be resolved by intermittent feeding of the paper sludge. SSF of paper sludge fed in batch mode, with intermittent feeding, produced lactic acid at 162 g L(-1), with a yield of 74% and a productivity of 1.4 g L(-1) h(-1). The lactic acid production performance of the modified bioreactor improved after removal of indigestible solid materials from the upper compartment, which enabled the feed of paper sludge to be increased. A mathematical model is described which predicts glucose and subsequent lactic acid production on the basis of the rate expressions of each step of the SSF process. Saccharification kinetics were determined by experiments on enzymatic cellulose hydrolysis, by use of a Michaelis-Menten equation; growth kinetics of L. rhamnosus were determined by use of a Monod expression which incorporated lactic acid inhibition. The kinetic model is expected to predict the performance of the SSF process. For further use of the lactic acid, i.e. polylactic acid, it must be recovered and purified. Results from application of the simulated moving-bed (SMB) process for separation of lactic acid and acetic acid are given, as are several methods of lactic acid purification.