| abstract |
A production method for chemicals by continuous fermentation, comprising: filtering a culture medium containing a fermentation feedstock, chemicals, microbes, or cultured cells by a separation membrane; collecting the chemicals from the filtrate; retaining or refluxing the unfiltered remains in the culture medium; and supplying washing liquid from the permeate side of a membrane unit to wash the membrane in a continuous fermentation in which the fermentation feedstock is added to the culture medium, characterized in that the washing liquid has a higher temperature than the culture medium, and is high-temperature water of 150°C or lower, and a microbial concentration in a fermenter is controlled by supplying the washing liquid. By using the production method, the retention of the filtration property for high cell-density cultivation of microbial mixture and the control of the microbial concentration can be simultaneously performed, in the collection of products by the fermentation using the separation membrane. |