Enhanced Glucoamylase Production by Aspergillus awamori Using Solid State Fermentation

In Chapter 5 , the know-how developed in Chapter 4 was applied to produce some fungal mash rich in hydrolytic enzymes by solid state fermentation (SSF) of waste cake. This simple but efficient technique was further applied to hydrolyze and saccharify mixed food wastes (FW). The enzymatic pretreatment of FW with this fungal mash resulted in 89.1 g/L glucose, 2.4 g/L free amino nitrogen, 165 g/L soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD), and 64% reduction in volatile solids within 24 h. The biomethane yield and production rate from FW pretreated with the fungal mash was found to be, respectively, approximately 2.3 and 3.5 times higher than without pretreatment. After anaerobic digestion of pretreated FW, a volatile solids removal of 80.4 ± 3.5% was achieved.