Xylitol production from corncob hydrolysate using polyurethane foam with immobilized Candida tropicalis

Polyurethane foam (PUF) was used as a carrier for Candida tropicalis (C. tropicalis) in the multi-batches fermentation of xylitol from xylose-containing corncob hemicellulose hydrolysate. After washing and sterilization, PUF (density of 320 kg m−3, specific surface area of 1.5–2.0 × 105 m2 m−3, average porosity of 95%, pore diameter of 0.03 mm and cubic length of 5 mm) was mixed with the culture medium at appropriate proportion followed by the inoculation. The fermentation parameters such as initial cell concentration, PUF dosage, pH value and temperature were controlled to study the effects on xylitol fermentation. In the 21-day durability tests, the optimal xylitol yield and volumetric productivity reached to 71.2% and 2.10 g L−1 h−1 respectively. Moreover, the average xylitol yield and volumetric productivity were 66.3% and 1.90 g L−1 h−1 for ten batchwise operations. The current research demonstrated that the PUF immobilization could serve as an efficient method for improving the cells vitality and enzyme reactivity in the continuous operation of fermentation.