Participants
Lubabah Hossain
Kombucha is a fermented tea drink, in which a cellulose by-product is formed called the SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast). When dehydrated, the SCOBY biomaterial mimics textures varying from papyrus to leather and can be used for a range of purposes relating to textiles, medicine, biotechnology, etc.
Within this study, 4 cultures were set up, all fed a different sugar mixture: white sugar, brown sugar, 50% glucose and 50% fructose, and 70% glucose and 30% fructose. This was done to explore differences that varying food source makes to the final dehydrated SCOBY product. Comparisons were made between the mass of cellulose growth and by recording the maximum force the material can withstand while tensile testing it.
Overall, results showed clear differences between sugar types, suggesting that white sugar produced the strongest material, and brown sugar the weakest. They also demonstrated that the increased glucose-to-fructose ratio aided cellulose production.
Funded by: Newcastle University Research Scholarship
Project Supervisor: Dr Elizabeth Heidrich