Abstract: In an aspect, there is provided a computer-implemented method for approximating product production in a bioreactor. The method comprises: providing a bioreactor containing live cells in a substrate, the bioreactor for cultivating, over a time period, a product derived from or of the cells during a manufacturing process; providing two or more sensors for measuring respective two or more different physical attributes of the substrate during the time period; receiving, at a processor, sensor data from the two or more sensors; and determining via the processor, based on a predetermined or recursive algorithm that correlates the sensor data and the product production by independent consideration of the sensor data of the two or more different physical attributes or by multivariate consideration of the sensor data of the two or more different physical attributes, an approximate amount of the product.

Abstract: A method for producing a fermented solution enriched in xylose is provided. The sugar stream that is fermented results from the hydrolysis of a lignocellulosic feedstock and comprises at least a hexose and a pentose. The method comprises fermenting the sugar stream resulting from the hydrolysis of the lignocellulosic feedstock with a microorganism that preferentially ferments the hexose over the pentose. The fermenting is conducted under aerobic conditions and comprises continuously feeding the sugar stream to a fermentation reactor at a dilution rate that converts the hexose to cell mass preferentially over the pentose, thereby reducing the concentration of the glucose in the sugar stream so that the fermented solution thus produced is enriched in the pentose relative to said sugar stream.