Fermentor

Fermentor is a type of Bioreactor for holding and controlling microorganisms and cell culture.

Fermentation is a way for microorganisms to continue metabolism when there is no exogenous electron acceptor. Microorganisms are forced to use an electron acceptor that is available endogenously, usually an organic compound. The organism gains high energy electrons by converting the molecule to lower energy forms by catalyzing the breakdown of oxygen functional groups to a lower redox state. The breakup of sugars into a large amount of modified small organic molecules such as ethanol, lactic acid, or acetic acid is useful to an OSE context for its ability to process agricultural feedstocks into desirable materials and preserve foods. Fermentation is carried out by yeast and bacteria, in liquid and anaerobic solids. Silage is an example of solid state fermentation and fermentors are used for solution state fermentation.