On-line glucose analyzer for fermentation applications.

Research on the control of fermentation processes suffers from serious lack of on-line analyzers which can be used to describe the chemical environment in the fermentors. Following in the footsteps of the clinical chemists, many industrial chemists hae been adopting enzyme procedures for analysis. Among these procedures, enzyme electrodes represent the latest developments in analytical chemistry. These devices combine the selectivity and sensitivity of enzymatic methods of analysis with the speed and simplicity of electrode measurements. In our recent work on material balancing applied to fermentation processes, we have had the need to continuously monitor glucose concentrations in the fermentor. For this purpose, we designed and built an on-line glucose analyser which utilizes an enzyme elctrode. This instrument was evaluated in a yeast fermentation. (Refs. 3).