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Production and surface‐active properties of microbial surfactants
Author(s) -
Margaritis A.,
Zajic J. E.,
Gerson D. F.
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
biotechnology and bioengineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.136
H-Index - 189
eISSN - 1097-0290
pISSN - 0006-3592
DOI - 10.1002/bit.260210706
Subject(s) - surface tension , chemistry , pulmonary surfactant , dodecylbenzene , distilled water , kerosene , microbial enhanced oil recovery , chromatography , fermentation , bacterial growth , sodium , bacteria , sulfonate , food science , organic chemistry , microorganism , biochemistry , biology , physics , genetics , quantum mechanics
A new source of surface‐active compounds produced by microbes was investigated. These biologically derived surfactants (biosurfactants) were found to be extracellular products of two newly isolated Corynebacterium species, which were gorwn on kerosene (Imperial Oil No.9). Batch‐growth kinetic studies were carried out in a 14 liter fermentor and the production of biosurfactants was found to be cell growth associated. The surface tension of the whole microbial broth was reduced to a minimum of about 30 dyn/cm, as compared with the surface tension for distilled water of 72 dyn/cm. The crude biosurfactants were recovered from the cell‐free broth, freeze‐dried, redissolved in water, and their surface‐active properties were studied. The biosurfactants reported here were found to be nontoxic and their ability to lower the surface tension of water was found to be comparable to that of sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate, common commercial synthetic surfactant.