Data for Influence of Inorganic Carbon Sources on Low-pH Succinic Acid Production by Issatchenkia orientalis: Process Insights and Kinetic Analysis

Mahata, C.; Mishra, S.; Tran, V.; Tan, S.; Zhao, H., and V. Singh. Jul. 27, 2026. “Data for Influence of Inorganic Carbon Sources on Low-pH Succinic Acid Production by Issatchenkia orientalis: Process Insights and Kinetic Analysis.” University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. DOI: 10.13012/B2IDB-5383861_V1

Bio-based succinic acid (SA) production has attracted significant interest; however, the relationship between fermentation conditions and SA biosynthesis remains insufficiently understood, particularly under low-pH operation. In this study, an engineered, acid-tolerant, nonmodel yeast, Issatchenkia orientalis, was employed to investigate the role of inorganic carbon supplementation in SA production from glucose. Because regulation of gas-phase CO2 during fermentation is challenging due to low solubility and off-gas losses, liquid-phase inorganic carbon sources, carbonic acid (H2CO3) and sodium carbonate (Na2CO3), were evaluated as indirect CO2 donors. Fermentations were conducted in a corn steep liquor-based medium under acidic conditions. Shake-flask experiments demonstrated that H2CO3 supplementation increased SA production, achieving a maximum titer of 8.9 g/L and a yield of 0.46 g/g glucose. Kinetic analysis of bench-scale fermentations showed that the SA formation was well described by the Luedeking–Piret model, indicating mixed growth-associated product formation with a substantial nongrowth-associated contribution under carbonic acid supplementation. Guided by these kinetic insights, a two-stage fed-batch fermentation strategy was implemented, resulting in an SA titer of 30 g/L and a yield of 0.57 g/g glucose within 115 h. Overall, this work provides process-relevant insights into integrating inorganic carbon utilization with low-pH fermentation to inform more sustainable SA biomanufacturing.

Illinois Data Bank: Figure data, succinic acid production and biomass formation, kinetic parameter evaluation, fermentation profiles