Microstructure of copolymers of polyhydroxyalkanoates produced by glycogen accumulating organisms with acetate as the sole carbon source

In vivo and Post-synthesis Strategies to Enhance the Properties of PHB-Based Materials: A Review

The transition toward "green" alternatives to petroleum-based plastics is driven by the need for "drop-in" replacement materials able to combine characteristics of existing plastics with biodegradability and renewability features. Promising alternatives are the polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), microbial biodegradable polyesters produced by a wide range of microorganisms as carbon, energy, and redox storage material, displaying properties very close to fossil-fuel-derived polyolefins. Among PHAs, polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is by far the most well-studied polymer. PHB is a thermoplastic polyester, with very narrow processability window, due to very low resistance to thermal degradation. Since the melting temperature of PHB is around 170-180°C, the processing temperature should be at least 180-190°C. The thermal degradation of PHB at these temperatures proceeds very quickly, causing a rapid decrease in its molecular weight. Moreover, due to its high crystallinity, PHB is stiff and brittle resulting in very poor mechanical properties with low extension at break, which limits its range of application. A further limit to the effective exploitation of these polymers is related to their production costs, which is mostly affected by the costs of the starting feedstocks. Since the first identification of PHB, researchers have faced these issues, and several strategies to improve the processability and reduce brittleness of this polymer have been developed. These approaches range from the in vivo synthesis of PHA copolymers, to the enhancement of post-synthesis PHB-based material performances, thus the addition of additives and plasticizers, acting on the crystallization process as well as on polymer glass transition temperature. In addition, reactive polymer blending with other bio-based polymers represents a versatile approach to modulate polymer properties while preserving its biodegradability. This review examines the state of the art of PHA processing, shedding light on the green and cost-effective tailored strategies aimed at modulating and optimizing polymer performances. Pioneering examples in this field will be examined, and prospects and challenges for their exploitation will be presented. Furthermore, since the establishment of a PHA-based industry passes through the designing of cost-competitive production processes, this review will inspect reported examples assessing this economic aspect, examining the most recent progresses toward process sustainability.

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production in open mixed cultures using waste activated sludge as biomass

In this work, volatile fatty acids (VFAs) were used as a carbon source to assess the ability of bacteria present in waste activated sludge (WAS), as indigenous flora, to accumulate polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA). Acetic acid and propionic acid were used both separately and in combination as feedstock, producing either homopolymer poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (3PHB) and/or the co-polymer, poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) P(3HB-co-3HV). The overall potential to use waste activated sludge as biomass for production of valuable polymers was assessed, and a quality assessment of the as-produced polymers was run, with the extracted polymer being analyzed for properties such as thermal, microstructure and molecular weight. It was found that a blend of copolymers was typically produced, with thermal properties being similar to those reported elsewhere. The overall PHA cell content obtained was 0.29 gPHA gVSS^-1.

Recovery of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) from wastewater: A review

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are biopolyesters accumulated as carbon and energy storage materials under unbalanced growth conditions by various microorganisms. They are one of the most promising potential substitutes for conventional non-biodegradable plastics due to their similar physicochemical properties, but most important, its biodegradability. Production cost of PHAs is still a great barrier to extend its application at industrial scale. In order to reduce that cost, research is focusing on the use of several wastes as feedstock (such as agro-industrial and municipal organic waste and wastewater) in a platform based on mixed microbial cultures. This review provides a critical illustration of the state of the art of the most likely-to-be-scale-up PHA production processes using mixed microbial cultures platform and waste streams as feedstock, with a particular focus on both, upstream and downstream processes. Current pilot scale studies, future prospects, challenges and developments in the field are also highlighted.

Biotechnological Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates: A Review on Trends and Latest Developments

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) producers have been reported to reside at various ecological niches which are naturally or accidently exposed to high organic matter or growth limited conditions such as dairy wastes, hydrocarbon contaminated sites, pulp and paper mill wastes, agricultural wastes, activated sludges of treatment plants, rhizosphere, and industrial effluents. Few among them also produce extracellular by-products like rhamnolipids, extracellular polymeric substances, and biohydrogen gas. These sorts of microbes are industrially important candidates for the reason that they can use waste materials of different origin as substrate with simultaneous production of valuable bioproducts including PHA. Implementation of integrated system to separate their by-products (intracellular and extracellular) can be economical in regard to production. In this review, we have discussed various microorganisms dwelling at different environmental conditions which stimulate them to accumulate carbon as polyhydroxyalkanoates granules and factors influencing its production and composition. A brief aspect on metabolites which are produced concomitantly with PHA has also been discussed. In conclusion, exploring of capabilities like of dual production by microbes and use of wastes as renewable substrate under optimized cultural conditions either in batch or continuous process can cause deduction in present cost of bioplastic production from stored PHA granules.

In-line monitoring of thermal degradation of PHA during melt-processing by Near-Infrared spectroscopy

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biopolymer processing is often challenged by low thermal stability, meaning that the temperatures and time for which these polymers can be processed is restrictive. Considering the sensitivity of PHA to processing conditions, there is a demand for in-line monitoring of the material behaviour in the melt. This paper investigates the application of Near-Infrared (NIR) spectroscopy for monitoring the thermal degradation of PHAs during melt-processing. Two types of materials were tested: two mixed culture PHAs extracted from biomass produced in laboratory and pilot scale after an acidic pre-treatment, and two commercially available materials derived from pure culture production systems. Thermal degradation studies were carried out in a laboratory scale extruder with conical twin screws connected to a NIR spectrometer by a fibre optic to allow in situ monitoring. Multivariate data analysis methods were applied for assessing thermal degradation kinetics and predicted the degree of degradation as measured by (1)H NMR (proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy). The pre-treated mixed culture PHAs were found to be more thermally stable when compared with the commercial pure culture PHAs as demonstrated by NIR, (1)H NMR and GPC (gel permeation chromatography).

The utilization of glycogen accumulating organisms for mixed culture production of polyhydroxyalkanoates

Production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) by an open mixed culture enriched in glycogen accumulating organisms (GAOs) under alternating anaerobic-aerobic conditions with acetate as carbon source was investigated. The culture exhibited a stable enrichment performance over the 450-day operating period with regards to phenotypic behavior and microbial community structure. Candidatus Competibacter phosphatis dominated the culture at between 54% and 70% of the bacterial biomass throughout the study, as determined by fluorescence in situ hybridization. In batch experiments under anaerobic conditions, PHA containing 3-hydroxybutyrate (3HB) and 27 mol-% 3-hydroxyvalerate (3HV) was accumulated up to 49% of cell dry weight utilizing the glycogen pool stored in the SBR cycle. Under aerobic and ammonia limited conditions, PHA comprising only 3HB was accumulated to 60% of cell dry weight. Glycogen was consumed during aerobic PHA accumulation as well as under anaerobic conditions, but with different stoichiometry. Under aerobic conditions 0.31 C-mol glycogen was consumed per consumed C-mol acetate compared to 0.99 under anaerobic conditions. Both the PHA biomass content and the specific PHA production rate obtained were similar to what is typically obtained using the more commonly applied aerobic dynamic feeding strategy.