A Study of Lactic Acid Fermentation by Lactobacillus bulgaricus NCIM-2359

Abstract

Lactic acid, also known as milk acid, is a chemical compound that plays a role in various biochemical processes and was first isolated in 1780 by the Swedish chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele. Lactic acid is a carboxylic acid with the chemical formula C3H6O3. It has a hydroxyl group adjacent to the carboxyl group, making it an alpha hydroxy acid.

In solution, it can lose a proton from the acidic group, producing the lactate ion (to be specific, an anion due to being negatively charged with an extra electron) CH3CH(OH)COO–. Compared to acetic acid, its pKa is 1 unit smaller, meaning lactic acid deprotonates ten times as easily as acetic acid does.