Acetone-butanol-ethanol fermentation and isoflavone extraction using kudzu roots

The economics of Acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation is greatly affected by raw materials, and the use of readily available starchy materials from marginal farming lands could be a viable option for reducing costs. Kudzu, a rapidly growing perennial leguminous vine, has been planted on marginal farming land and widely distributed in Asia and America. This study investigated ABE fermentation by C. acetobutylicum ATCC 824 using kudzu roots and isoflavone extraction from kudzu fermentation residue (KFR). The kudzu roots could be used as a sole substrate for ABE fermentation without nutritional supplements. Batch culture containing 140 g kudzu/L produced 17.99 ± 1.08 g/L solvent (ABE), including 11.20 ± 0.79 g/L butanol, 5.54 ± 0.20 g/L acetone, and 1.15 ± 0.09 g/L ethanol, with a productivity of 0.19 g/(L/h) and a yield of 0.33 g solvent/g sugar after 96 h of fermentation. Isoflavone yield extracted from KFR was 1.90/100 g KFR, approximately 48% higher compared with that extracted from raw kudzu. A kinetic analysis of the extraction process showed that both the isoflavone yield and the extraction rate obtained from KFR were higher than the corresponding values obtained from raw kudzu. These results indicate that kudzu may provide a new potential raw material for ABE production and the process of ABE fermentation integrated with isoflavone extraction may provide a new way to reduce fermentable substrate costs.