Comparative Study of Nutrient Supplements and Natural Inorganic Components in Ethanolic Fermentation of Nipa Sap

Abstract

The current study was initiated to explore the potential of nipa (Nypa fruticans) sap for bioethanol production in the presence of nutrient supplements and natural inorganic components available in the sap. Total chemical composition of nipa sap was 19.5 wt%, mainly composed of sucrose, glucose and fructose. Additionally, the elemental analysis of the sap gave 0.5 wt% inorganics with Na, K and Cl as its main components, corresponding to its habitat. Batch fermentative assays showed that the fermentation trend was similar between nipa and sugarcane sap with over 95% bioethanol yields in conditions with and without nutrient supplements. Further studies showed that, the natural inorganic components available in nipa sap played a significant role as nutrition materials for metabolic growth of microorganisms, consequently affecting the sap fermentability to bioethanol. As a whole, nipa sap showed some interesting characteristics in terms of fermentability without nutrient supplements making it a good alternative feedstock for bioethanol production.