Appeal No. 1996-2215 Application No. 08/101,093 a) providing a culture medium having definite components for culturing the microorganism of the genus Gluconobacter which includes at least one amino acid selected from the group consisting of glutamic acid, glutamine, alanine, serine, threonine, asparagine and aspartic acid; b) adding D-sorbitol to the culture medium in an amount such that the concentration of D-sorbitol is maintained at or under 5% by weight of the culture medium during and after the growth phase of the microorganism; c) pumping oxygen gas into the culture medium and monitoring the amount of dissolved oxygen in the culture medium such that the concentration of the dissolved oxygen in the culture medium is maintained in a prescribed range, the culture medium releasing an exhaust gas comprising oxygen and carbon dioxide; d) nonadsorbently controlling the partial pressure of carbon dioxide in the culture tank by venting via a valve a portion of the exhaust gas from the culture tank, the partial pressure of carbon dioxide in the culture tank being maintained in the range from 5 to 10% by such venting; and e) releasing to the atmosphere some of the exhaust gas which has been vented from the culture tank and recirculating the remaining exhaust gas which has been vented but not released back to the culture medium by mixing such exhaust gas, which includes carbon dioxide produced by the culture medium, with the oxygen gas prior to the oxygen gas being pumped into the culture medium, whereby L-sorbose is efficiently produced by the microbial oxidation of D-sorbitol. 34. A method for recycling exhaust gas produced by a microbiological industrial process in a culture tank, comprising: a) carrying out the microbiological process in a culture medium in the culture tank, the exhaust gas produced by the microbiological process comprising carbon dioxide; then 2Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 NextLast modified: November 3, 2007