1. Introduction
Immobilized cell reactors have been extensively
used due to their suitability to confine a high cell
density. The reactor can be operated at dilution
rates higher than the washout to achieve increased
productivities. Among the different immobilization
methods, gel entrapment is the most common.
Carrageenan has been used for this purpose
due to its rapid gelification in the presence of
potassium ions. Immobilization conditions do not
require drastic changes of temperature and pressure,
which could affect the activity, and viability
of microorganisms.
A literature survey revealed that no such data
are available on the use of immobilized cells for
the production of ethanol from pineapple cannery
waste. This article deals with the use of immobilized
cells of Saccharomyces cere6isiae, ATCC
24553, a respiration deficient strain, to produce
ethanol from pineapple cannery waste using atapered glass column reactor. A vide by vide
comparison is also made between the free and
immobilized cell systems.