Erythritol, also known as protoporphyrin/erythritol, is widely present in nature, naturally found in fruits such as mushrooms/grapes/watermelons/peaches and pears, as well as fermented foods such as beer/soy sauce/wine/cheese and sake [31]. Small amounts can also be detected in animal eye lenses, plasma, fetal fluid, semen, and urine.
There are three main methods for producing erythritol, namely biological extraction, chemical synthesis, and microbial fermentation. Among them, microbial fermentation has become the most ideal method for producing erythritol due to its mild production conditions, stable product quality, and high food safety
Erythritol, scientific name 1,2,3,4-tetrabutanol, molecular formula C4H10O4, molecular weight 122.1198, structure as shown in Figure 1. Erythritol is a odorless white crystalline powder with a relative sweetness of 0.65. It is easy to crystallize and soluble in water, with high stability to acid and heat. It exists stably in a wide range of pH and is insoluble with strong oxidants. Compared with various functional sugar alcohols such as xylitol, sorbitol, mannitol, maltitol, etc., it has the characteristics of low molecular weight, high solution osmotic pressure, and low hygroscopicity.
Product Parameters and Applications
The production of erythritol can be divided into biological extraction/chemical synthesis method and microbial fermentation method. In comparison, microbial fermentation method has become the most ideal method for erythritol production due to its mild production conditions, stable product quality, and high food safety. Microbial fermentation method [7] The production of erythritol by fermentation method began in the 1990s, and microbial fermentation is widely used internationally for large-scale production of erythritol. The carbon sources for producing erythritol include alkanes, monosaccharides, and disaccharides. Glucose, fructose, mannose, and sucrose are all good carbon sources for producing erythritol, with D-mannose having the highest conversion rate of 31.5%. However, due to cost factors, mainly starch based raw materials such as wheat or corn are enzymatically degraded to produce glucose, which is then fermented by high permeability tolerant yeast or other strains to produce erythritol. The genera that can produce erythritol include Candida, Sphingomonas, Trichosporum, Triceratops, and Pichia. The industrial production process of erythritol fermentation method is as follows: starch → liquefaction → saccharification → glucose → fermentation of production strains → filtration → chromatographic separation → purification → concentration → crystallization → separation → drying, finally obtaining erythritol with an average yield of about 50%. Research has shown that the fermentation method of erythritol is influenced by various factors, such as changes in osmotic pressure significantly affecting the generation of polyols, inorganic salts Mn2+and Cu2+can increase the yield of erythritol, and oxygen and temperature both have an impact on its yield. Compared with chemical synthesis methods, the fermentation method has more production advantages. Biological synthesis method [8] The main process of producing erythritol by biosynthetic method includes: preparation of culture medium/yeast inoculation/fermentation/isolation and refining. Specifically, glucose and other raw materials are first prepared into a culture medium, and then yeast is inoculated for fermentation under certain temperature and humidity conditions. After fermentation, the bacterial cells and liquid are separated by centrifugation/filtration, and finally refined into erythritol products through crystallization/drying processes. Chemical synthesis method [8]
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