Process intensification of continuous xylitol production in a 3D printing fixedbed microbioreactor by immobilized co-culture of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Pachysolen tannophilus

•Production of xylitol from the hemicellulose fraction of agro-industrial residues.•Process improvement due to the use of co-culture of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Pachysolen tannophilus.•Process intensification by using a 3D printing microbioreactor.•The process can be applied to manufacture various biorefinery products. In this study, a continuous 3D printing fixedbed microbioreactor was used to intensify the xylitol production process from xylose and xylulose. The approach used in this research focuses on the co-culture of two wild yeasts (S. cerevisiae and P. tannophilus). An experimental design allowed to determine that the best condition of co-culture was 50% S. cerevisiae and 50% P. tannophilus. Fermentations carried out in the microbioreactor showed an increase of 7.12-fold in the concentration of xylitol when compared with the monocultures. This approach is a promising alternative for xylitol production using the hemicellulose fraction of lignocellulosic materials in microbioreactor for the implementation of sustainable intensification process. [Display omitted]