Method for producing methane from carbon dioxide by co-culture

A method for producing methane by biological conversion of carbon dioxide, performed by means of a symbiosis between a first microorganism and a second microorganism, wherein:

• said first microorganism is one or more bacteria selected from the group consisting of:
• Methanothermobacter thermoautotrophicus (ATCC No. 29096), Methanococcus deltae (ATCC No. 35294), Methanococcus vannielii (ATCC No. 35089), Methanococcoides methylutens (ATCC No. 33938), Methanocaldococcus jannaschii (ATCC No. 43067), Methanococcus maripaludis (ATCC No. 43000), Methanosarcina barkeri Schnellen (ATCC No. 43569), Methanospirillum hungatei (ATCC No. 27890), Methylococcus capsulatus (ATCC No. 33009), Methanosarcina mazei (Barker) Mah and Kuhn (ATCC No. BAA-159), and Methanococcus aeolicus (ATCC No. BAA 1280)
• and said second microorganism is:
• (a) one or more microorganisms selected from the group consisting of:
• Anaerobaculum mobile (ATCC No. 43122), Rhodococcus rhodochrous (ATCC No. 21198), Moorella thermoacetica (ATCC No. 39073), Lactobacillus helveticus (ATCC No. 55163), Chlorella vulgaris Beijerinck (ATCC No. 11468), Chlorella vulgaris var. viridis (ATCC No. 16487), Chlorella sp. (ATCC No. 30582), Euglena gracilis (ATCC No. 12716), Euglena gracilis var. bacillaris (ATCC No. 10616), Euglena gracilis var. saccharophila (ATCC No. 12893), Scenedesmus obliquus (ATCC No. 11477), and Anabaena sp. (ATCC No. 27899)
• or
• (b) one or more microorganisms selected from the group consisting of Rhodobacter sphaeroides (ATCC No. 49419), Rubrivivax sp. (ATCC No. 55304), Bacillus coagulans (ATCC No. 10545), Acetoanaerobium noterae (ATCC No. 35199), Rhodovulum sulfidophilum (ATCC No. 35886), and Bacillus smithii (ATCC No. 55404);
• wherein:
• if said second microorganism is one or more microorganism listed in (a), said first microorganism and said second microorganism are cultured in distinct and mutually connected fermentation reactors;
• if said second microorganism is one or more microorganisms listed in (b), said first microorganism and said second microorganism are cultured in the same fermentation reactor;
• comprising the steps of:
• (i) providing a symbiotic culture, growing said first and second microorganisms until a steady state is reached, bubbling carbon dioxide in each fermentation reactor with a flow that is proportional to the volume of said fermentation reactor, so as to obtain the production of methane by the first microorganism;
• and
• (ii) capturing and sending to storage the methane produced in step (i).