Effect of fermentation conditions on the production of citric acid from cheese whey by Aspergillus niger

The effect of pH value, methanol, and salt concentration on the production of citric acid from cheese whey by two strains of Aspergillus niger i.e. CAIM 111 and CAIM 167, was investigated. Lactose concentration, utilized lactose, citric acid concentration, conversion coefficient of lactose to citric acid, and mycelial dry weight were measured during the fermentation process. The maximum citric acid concentration (1.06 and 0.82 gl), and conversion coefficient (5.58 and 7.45%) were obtained at pH 3.5 after 9 days of fermentation for A. niger CAIM 111 and A. niger CAIM 167, respectively. The presence of 4% (vv) methanol in the fermentation medium increased the amount of citric acid produced by A. niger CAIM 111 and A. niger CAIM 167 by 23% and 18%, respectively. Both strains showed a high ability to utilize lactose for the production of citric acid when grown in the presence of 10% (wv) salt. The conversion coefficient of lactose to citric acid was 28.24% for A. niger CAIM 111 and 25.60% for A. niger CAIM 167 when the fermentation medium had a 10% (wv) level of salt. The cumulative effect of fermentation medium pH (3.5), methanol concentration (4%, vv) and salt concentration (10%, wv) during the fermentation process of whey did not enhance the production of citric acid by A. niger CAIM 111, while it did increase the production of citric acid by A. niger CAIM 167 by about 4-fold.