Patent ID: 9624512
Date: 2017-04-18
CPC Classifications: C12P,Y02E

Claim:
1. A method of improving the efficiency of microbial fermentation of a gaseous substrate comprising CO and less than 5% H 2 , said method comprising: a) providing the substrate to a microbial culture comprising one or more micro-organism to produce products selected from the group consisting of acids, alcohols and mixtures thereof and CO 2 as a by-product; b) measuring the total amount of CO consumed by the microbial culture and the amount of CO 2 produced by the microbial culture and calculating a ratio of CO 2 produced /CO consumed ; c) adjusting the substrate supply rate to keep the CO 2 produced /CO consumed ratio within a predetermined range of a value of the ratio of about 0.5 to optimize acid production or about 0.667 to optimize ethanol production; and d) repeating steps b and c to keep the CO 2 produced /CO consumed ratio within the predetermined range.