Enzymes in Brewing Industry

Enzymes in Brewing Industry

Bioengineering Research Paper

Enzymes are catalysts or proteins that are produced by a living cell, but in process are independent of the cell itself. There are two types of enzymes i.e

1) Cell Independent enzymes

2) Non-enzymic enzymes

Enzymes are long chains of amino acids held together by peptide bonds. They exist in all living cells, usually controlling the metabolic process whereby nutrients are converted into energy. Enzymes are also catalyst, this mean that enzymes can speed up chemical processes that would normally move very slowly. Enzymes unfortunately don’t last forever they have limited stability or lifespan when they have completed their function in the chemical reaction.

Science shows that enzymes work on raw material. Fruit, cereal, milk, beer or wood are some typical products for enzymatic conversion. Enzymes are specific, they usually break down or synthesize one particular compound, and in some cases enzymes limit their actions to specific bonds in the compound with in which they react. An example gluconases is one of the many enzymes used in beer brewing. This enzyme is used in industrial applications of brewing beer and is a very efficient catalyst. It breaks down the wheat and converts the carbohydrates into sugars that speed up the reaction in the aspect of the beer’s fermentation.

Enzymes need certain types of conditions to operate, these conditions are usually mild in the areas of temperature and acidity. Many enzymes function around 30º- 70ºC and their acidity are usually around neutral(ph 7). Enzymes are very important to industrial processes, enzymes they are energy saving and also protect the lifespan of equipment used in processes and also having to buy special equipment resistant to heat, pressure or corrosion. Industrial enzymes can be produced in an ecological way, one of the main ways enzymes can be produced industrially is to culture enzymes in vats.

Man has been exploiting enzymes in nature unknowingly for centuries. Also for thousands of years the beer brewing processes of many countries has relied heavily on barley malt. In this period of time barley was malted without brewers understanding what happen to the barley during the malting process. The idea back then was good beer couldn’t be made without malted barley. The unknown