1
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Costa P, Basaglia M, Casella S, Favaro L. Copolymers as a turning point for large scale polyhydroxyalkanoates applications. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 275:133575. [PMID: 38960239 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.133575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2024] [Revised: 05/28/2024] [Accepted: 06/28/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
Traditional plastics reshaped the society thanks to their brilliant properties and cut-price manufacturing costs. However, their protracted durability and limited recycling threaten the environment. Worthy alternatives seem to be polyhydroxyalkanoates, compostable biopolymers produced by several microbes. The most common 3-hydroxybutyrate homopolymer has limited applications calling for copolymers biosynthesis to enhance material properties. As a growing number of researches assess the discovery of novel comonomers, great endeavors are dedicated as well to copolymers production scale-up, where the choice of the microbial carbon source significantly affects the overall economic feasibility. Diving into novel metabolic pathways, engineered strains, and cutting-edge bioprocess strategies, this review aims to survey up-to-date publications about copolymers production, focusing primarily on precursors origins. Specifically, in the core of the review, copolymers precursors have been divided into three categories based on their economic value: the costliest structurally related ones, the structurally unrelated ones, and finally various low-cost waste streams. The combination of cheap biomasses, efficient pretreatment strategies, and robust microorganisms paths the way towards the development of versatile and circular polymers. Conceived to researchers and industries interested in tackling polyhydroxyalkanoates production, this review explores an angle often underestimated yet of prime importance: if PHAs copolymers offer advanced properties and sustainable end-of-life, the feedstock choice for their upstream becomes a major factor in the development of plastic substitutes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo Costa
- Waste-to-Bioproducts Lab, Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, Viale dell'Università, 16, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy.
| | - Marina Basaglia
- Waste-to-Bioproducts Lab, Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, Viale dell'Università, 16, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy.
| | - Sergio Casella
- Waste-to-Bioproducts Lab, Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, Viale dell'Università, 16, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy.
| | - Lorenzo Favaro
- Waste-to-Bioproducts Lab, Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padova, Agripolis, Viale dell'Università, 16, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy; Department of Microbiology, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, 7602 Matieland, South Africa.
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2
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Schwab S, Baur M, Nelson TF, Mecking S. Synthesis and Deconstruction of Polyethylene-type Materials. Chem Rev 2024; 124:2327-2351. [PMID: 38408312 PMCID: PMC10941192 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Revised: 01/16/2024] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024]
Abstract
Polyethylene deconstruction to reusable smaller molecules is hindered by the chemical inertness of its hydrocarbon chains. Pyrolysis and related approaches commonly require high temperatures, are energy-intensive, and yield mixtures of multiple classes of compounds. Selective cleavage reactions under mild conditions (
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon
T. Schwab
- Chair of Chemical Materials Science,
Department of Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Maximilian Baur
- Chair of Chemical Materials Science,
Department of Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Taylor F. Nelson
- Chair of Chemical Materials Science,
Department of Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Stefan Mecking
- Chair of Chemical Materials Science,
Department of Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
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3
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Ackermann YS, de Witt J, Mezzina MP, Schroth C, Polen T, Nikel PI, Wynands B, Wierckx N. Bio-upcycling of even and uneven medium-chain-length diols and dicarboxylates to polyhydroxyalkanoates using engineered Pseudomonas putida. Microb Cell Fact 2024; 23:54. [PMID: 38365718 PMCID: PMC10870600 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-024-02310-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Bio-upcycling of plastics is an emerging alternative process that focuses on extracting value from a wide range of plastic waste streams. Such streams are typically too contaminated to be effectively processed using traditional recycling technologies. Medium-chain-length (mcl) diols and dicarboxylates (DCA) are major products of chemically or enzymatically depolymerized plastics, such as polyesters or polyethers. In this study, we enabled the efficient metabolism of mcl-diols and -DCA in engineered Pseudomonas putida as a prerequisite for subsequent bio-upcycling. We identified the transcriptional regulator GcdR as target for enabling metabolism of uneven mcl-DCA such as pimelate, and uncovered amino acid substitutions that lead to an increased coupling between the heterologous β-oxidation of mcl-DCA and the native degradation of short-chain-length DCA. Adaptive laboratory evolution and subsequent reverse engineering unravelled two distinct pathways for mcl-diol metabolism in P. putida, namely via the hydroxy acid and subsequent native β-oxidation or via full oxidation to the dicarboxylic acid that is further metabolized by heterologous β-oxidation. Furthermore, we demonstrated the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates from mcl-diols and -DCA by a single strain combining all required metabolic features. Overall, this study provides a powerful platform strain for the bio-upcycling of complex plastic hydrolysates to polyhydroxyalkanoates and leads the path for future yield optimizations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yannic S Ackermann
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany
| | - Jan de Witt
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany
| | - Mariela P Mezzina
- The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Christoph Schroth
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany
| | - Tino Polen
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany
| | - Pablo I Nikel
- The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Benedikt Wynands
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany
| | - Nick Wierckx
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Jülich, Germany.
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4
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Anjana, Rawat S, Goswami S. Synergistic approach for enhanced production of polyhydroxybutyrate by Bacillus pseudomycoides SAS-B1: Effective utilization of glycerol and acrylic acid through fed-batch fermentation and its environmental impact assessment. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 258:128764. [PMID: 38103666 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.128764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2023] [Revised: 12/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
The continual rise in the consumption of petroleum-based synthetic polymers raised a significant environmental concern. Bacillus pseudomycoides SAS-B1 is a gram-positive rod-shaped halophilic bacterium capable of accumulating Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB)-an intracellular biodegradable polymer. In the present study, the optimal conditions for cell cultivation in the seed media were developed. The optimal factors included a preservation age of 14 to 21 days (with 105 to 106 cells/mL), inoculum size of 0.1 % (w/v), 1 % (w/v) glucose, and growth temperature of 30 °C. The cells were then cultivated in a two-stage fermentation process utilizing glycerol and Corn Steep Liquor (CSL) as carbon and nitrogen sources, respectively. PHB yield was effectively increased from 2.01 to 9.21 g/L through intermittent feeding of glycerol and CSL, along with acrylic acid. FTIR, TGA, DSC, and XRD characterization studies were employed to enumerate the recovered PHB and determine its physicochemical properties. Additionally, the study assessed the cradle-to-gate Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of PHB production, considering net CO2 generation and covering all major environmental impact categories. The production of 1000 kg of PHB resulted in lower stratospheric ozone depletion and comparatively reduced carbon dioxide emissions (2022.7 kg CO2 eq.) and terrestrial ecotoxicity (9.54 kg 1,4-DCB eq.) than typical petrochemical polymers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anjana
- Division of Chemical Engineering, Centre of Innovative and Applied Bioprocessing, Knowledge City, Sector-81, Mohali, Punjab 140306, India; Department of Biotechnology, Regional Center for Biotechnology (RCB), Faridabad, Haryana 121001, India
| | - Shristhi Rawat
- Division of Chemical Engineering, Centre of Innovative and Applied Bioprocessing, Knowledge City, Sector-81, Mohali, Punjab 140306, India
| | - Saswata Goswami
- Division of Chemical Engineering, Centre of Innovative and Applied Bioprocessing, Knowledge City, Sector-81, Mohali, Punjab 140306, India; Department of Biotechnology, Regional Center for Biotechnology (RCB), Faridabad, Haryana 121001, India.
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5
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Saeed AM, Taha AG, Dardeer HM, Aly MF. One-pot synthesis of novel chitosan-salicylaldehyde polymer composites for ammonia sensing. Sci Rep 2024; 14:239. [PMID: 38168141 PMCID: PMC10761969 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-50243-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/17/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Chitosan (Chs)-salicylaldehyde (Sal) polymer derivatives were formed via the reaction of Chs-Sal with zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) and beta-cyclodextrin (β-CD). These polymers were synthesized through inclusion with β-CD and doping with ZnO NPs to give pseudopolyrotaxane and Chs-Sal/ZnO NPs composite, respectively, for low-temperature detection and sensing of NH3 vapors as great significance in environmental control and human health. Additionally, the polymer (Chs-Sal/β-CD/ZnO NPs) was prepared via the insertion of generated composite (Chs-Sal/ZnO NPs) through β-cyclodextrin ring. The structural and morphological characterizations of the synthesized derivatives were confirmed by utilizing FTIR, XRD and, SEM, respectively. Also, the optical properties and thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) of the synthesized polymers were explored. The obtained results confirmed that using β-CD or ZnO NPs for modification of polymer (Chs-Sal) dramatically enhanced thermal stability and optical features of the synthesized polymers. Investigations on the NH3-sensing properties of Chs-Sal/β-CD/ZnO NPs composite were carried out at concentrations down to 10 ppm and good response and recovery times (650 s and 350 s, respectively) at room temperature (RT) and indicated that modification by β-CD and doping with ZnO NPs effectively improves the NH3-sensing response of Chs-Sal from 712 to 6192 using Chs-Sal/β-CD/ZnO NPs, respectively, with low LOD and LOQ of 0.12 and 0.4 ppb, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed Muhammed Saeed
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, 11884, Egypt.
| | - Ahmed Gaber Taha
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, South Valley University, Qena, 83523, Egypt
| | - Hemat Mohamed Dardeer
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, South Valley University, Qena, 83523, Egypt
| | - Moustafa Fawzy Aly
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, South Valley University, Qena, 83523, Egypt.
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6
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Nelson TF, Rothauer D, Sander M, Mecking S. Degradable and Recyclable Polyesters from Multiple Chain Length Bio- and Waste-Sourceable Monomers. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2023; 62:e202310729. [PMID: 37675615 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202310729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 09/04/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 09/08/2023]
Abstract
Monomers sourced from waste or biomass are often mixtures of different chain lengths; e.g. catalytic oxidation of polyethylene waste yields mixtures of dicarboxylic acids (DCAs). Yet, polyesters synthesized from such monomer mixtures have rarely been studied. We report polyesters based on multiple linear aliphatic DCAs, present in chain length distributions that vary in their centers and ranges. We demonstrate that these materials can adopt high-density polyethylene-like solid state structures, and are ductile (e.g. Et 610 MPa), allowing for injection molding, or film and fiber extrusion. Melting and crystallization points of the polyesters show no odd-even effects as dipoles cannot favorably align in the crystal, similar to traditional odd carbon numbered, long-chain DCA polyesters. Biodegradation studies of 13 C-labelled polyesters in soil reveal rapid mineralization, and depolymerization by methanolysis indicates suitability for closed-loop recycling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor F Nelson
- Department of Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätstrasse 10, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Dario Rothauer
- Department of Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätstrasse 10, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Michael Sander
- Institute of Biogeochemistry and Pollutant Dynamics, ETH Zurich, Universitätstrasse 16, 8092, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Stefan Mecking
- Department of Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätstrasse 10, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
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7
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Schaerer L, Putman L, Bigcraft I, Byrne E, Kulas D, Zolghadr A, Aloba S, Ong R, Shonnard D, Techtmann S. Coexistence of specialist and generalist species within mixed plastic derivative-utilizing microbial communities. MICROBIOME 2023; 11:224. [PMID: 37838714 PMCID: PMC10576394 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-023-01645-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 10/16/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Plastic-degrading microbial isolates offer great potential to degrade, transform, and upcycle plastic waste. Tandem chemical and biological processing of plastic wastes has been shown to substantially increase the rates of plastic degradation; however, the focus of this work has been almost entirely on microbial isolates (either bioengineered or naturally occurring). We propose that a microbial community has even greater potential for plastic upcycling. A microbial community has greater metabolic diversity to process mixed plastic waste streams and has built-in functional redundancy for optimal resilience. RESULTS Here, we used two plastic-derivative degrading communities as a model system to investigate the roles of specialist and generalist species within the microbial communities. These communities were grown on five plastic-derived substrates: pyrolysis treated high-density polyethylene, chemically deconstructed polyethylene terephthalate, disodium terephthalate, terephthalamide, and ethylene glycol. Short-read metagenomic and metatranscriptomic sequencing were performed to evaluate activity of microorganisms in each treatment. Long-read metagenomic sequencing was performed to obtain high-quality metagenome assembled genomes and evaluate division of labor. CONCLUSIONS Data presented here show that the communities are primarily dominated by Rhodococcus generalists and lower abundance specialists for each of the plastic-derived substrates investigated here, supporting previous research that generalist species dominate batch culture. Additionally, division of labor may be present between Hydrogenophaga terephthalate degrading specialists and lower abundance protocatechuate degrading specialists. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Schaerer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, 740 Dow ESE Building, 1400 Townsend Drive, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA
| | - Lindsay Putman
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, 740 Dow ESE Building, 1400 Townsend Drive, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA
| | - Isaac Bigcraft
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, 740 Dow ESE Building, 1400 Townsend Drive, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA
| | - Emma Byrne
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, 740 Dow ESE Building, 1400 Townsend Drive, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA
| | - Daniel Kulas
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, USA
| | - Ali Zolghadr
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, USA
| | - Sulihat Aloba
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, USA
| | - Rebecca Ong
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, USA
| | - David Shonnard
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, USA
| | - Stephen Techtmann
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, 740 Dow ESE Building, 1400 Townsend Drive, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA.
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8
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Arifuzzaman M, Sumpter BG, Demchuk Z, Do C, Arnould MA, Rahman MA, Cao PF, Popovs I, Davis RJ, Dai S, Saito T. Selective deconstruction of mixed plastics by a tailored organocatalyst. MATERIALS HORIZONS 2023; 10:3360-3368. [PMID: 37482885 DOI: 10.1039/d3mh00801k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/25/2023]
Abstract
Plastic represents an essential material in our society; however, a major imbalance between their high production and end-of-life management is leading to unrecovered energy, economic hardship, and a high carbon footprint. The adoption of plastic recycling has been limited, mainly due to the difficulty of recycling mixed plastics. Here, we report a versatile organocatalyst for selective glycolysis of diverse consumer plastics and their mixed waste streams into valuable chemicals. The developed organocatalyst selectively deconstructs condensation polymers at a specific temperature, and additives or other polymers such as polyolefin or cellulose can be readily separated from the mixed plastics, providing a chemical recycling path for many existing mixed plastics today. The Life Cycle Assessment indicates that the production of various condensation polymers from the deconstructed monomers will result in a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and energy input, opening a new paradigm of plastic circularity toward a net-zero carbon society.
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Affiliation(s)
- Md Arifuzzaman
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.
| | - Bobby G Sumpter
- Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
| | - Zoriana Demchuk
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.
| | - Changwoo Do
- Neutron Scattering Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
| | - Mark A Arnould
- Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
| | - Md Anisur Rahman
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.
| | - Peng-Fei Cao
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.
| | - Ilja Popovs
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.
| | - Robert J Davis
- Department of Chemical Engineering, The University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4741, USA
| | - Sheng Dai
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.
| | - Tomonori Saito
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.
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9
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Putman LI, Schaerer LG, Wu R, Kulas DG, Zolghadr A, Ong RG, Shonnard DR, Techtmann SM. Deconstructed Plastic Substrate Preferences of Microbial Populations from the Natural Environment. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0036223. [PMID: 37260392 PMCID: PMC10433879 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.00362-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Over half of the world's plastic waste is landfilled, where it is estimated to take hundreds of years to degrade. Given the continued use and disposal of plastic products, it is vital that we develop fast and effective ways to utilize plastic waste. Here, we explore the potential of tandem chemical and biological processing to process various plastics quickly and effectively. Four samples of compost or sediment were used to set up enrichment cultures grown on mixtures of compounds, including disodium terephthalate and terephthalic acid (monomers of polyethylene terephthalate), compounds derived from the chemical deconstruction of polycarbonate, and pyrolysis oil derived from high-density polyethylene plastics. Established enrichment communities were also grown on individual substrates to investigate the substrate preferences of different taxa. Biomass harvested from the cultures was characterized using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and shotgun metagenomic sequencing. These data reveal low-diversity microbial communities structured by differences in culture inoculum, culture substrate source plastic type, and time. Microbial populations from the classes Alphaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Acidobacteriae were significantly enriched when grown on substrates derived from high-density polyethylene and polycarbonate. The metagenomic data contain abundant aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbon degradation genes relevant to the biodegradation of deconstructed plastic substrates used here. We show that microbial populations from diverse environments are capable of growth on substrates derived from the chemical deconstruction or pyrolysis of multiple plastic types and that paired chemical and biological processing of plastics should be further developed for industrial applications to manage plastic waste. IMPORTANCE The durability and impermeable nature of plastics have made them a popular material for numerous applications, but these same qualities make plastics difficult to dispose of, resulting in massive amounts of accumulated plastic waste in landfills and the natural environment. Since plastic use and disposal are projected to increase in the future, novel methods to effectively break down and dispose of current and future plastic waste are desperately needed. We show that the products of chemical deconstruction or pyrolysis of plastic can successfully sustain the growth of low-diversity microbial communities. These communities were enriched from multiple environmental sources and are capable of degrading complex xenobiotic carbon compounds. This study demonstrates that tandem chemical and biological processing can be used to degrade multiple types of plastics over a relatively short period of time and may be a future avenue for the mitigation of rapidly accumulating plastic waste.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lindsay I. Putman
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Laura G. Schaerer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Ruochen Wu
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Daniel G. Kulas
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Ali Zolghadr
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Rebecca G. Ong
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - David R. Shonnard
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Stephen M. Techtmann
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
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10
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Byrne E, Schum S, Schaerer L, Techtmann SM. Impacts of Nutrients on Alkene Biodegradation Rates and Microbial Community Composition in Enriched Consortia from Natural Inocula. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0031622. [PMID: 37017561 PMCID: PMC10269803 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.00316-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2022] [Accepted: 01/25/2023] [Indexed: 04/06/2023] Open
Abstract
There is a growing need for biological and chemical methods for upcycling plastic waste streams. Pyrolysis processes can accelerate plastic depolymerization by breaking polyethylene into smaller alkene components which may be more biodegradable than the initial polymer. While the biodegradation of alkanes has been extensively studied, the role microorganisms play in alkene breakdown is not well understood. Alkene biodegradation holds the potential to contribute to the coupling of chemical and biological processing of polyethylene plastics. In addition, nutrient levels are known to impact rates of hydrocarbon degradation. Model alkenes were used (C6, C10, C16, and C20) to follow the breakdown capability of microbial communities from three environmental inocula in three nutrient levels over the course of 5 days. Higher-nutrient cultures were anticipated to exhibit enhanced biodegradation capabilities. Alkene mineralization was assessed by measuring CO2 production in the culture headspace using GC-FID (gas chromatography-flame ionization detection), and alkene breakdown was directly quantified by measuring extracted residual hydrocarbons using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Here, the efficacy of enriched consortia derived from the microbial communities of three inoculum sources (farm compost, Caspian Sea sediment, and an iron-rich sediment) at alkene breakdown was investigated over the course of 5 days across three nutrient treatments. No significant differences in CO2 production across nutrient levels or inoculum types were found. A high extent of biodegradation was observed in all sample types, with most samples achieving 60% to 95% biodegradation of all quantified compounds. Here, our findings indicate that alkene biodegradation is a common metabolic process in diverse environments and that nutrient levels common to culture media can support the growth of alkene-biodegrading consortia, primarily from the families Xanthamonadaceae, Nocardiaceae, and Beijerinkiaceae. IMPORTANCE Excess plastic waste poses a major environmental problem. Microorganisms can metabolize many of the breakdown products (alkenes) of plastics. While microbial degradation of plastics is typically slow, coupling chemical and biological processing of plastics has the potential to lead to novel methods for the upcycling of plastic wastes. Here, we explored how microbial consortia derived from diverse environments metabolize alkenes, which are produced by the pyrolysis of polyolefin plastics such as HDPE, and PP. We found that microbial consortia from diverse environments can rapidly metabolize alkenes of different chain lengths. We also explored how nutrients affect the rates of alkene breakdown and the microbial diversity of the consortia. Here, the findings indicate that alkene biodegradation is a common metabolism in diverse environments (farm compost, Caspian sediment, and iron-rich sediment) and that nutrient levels common to culture medium can support growth of alkene-biodegrading consortia, primarily from families Xanthamonadaceae, Nocardiaceae, and Beijerinkiaceae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Byrne
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Simeon Schum
- Great Lakes Research Center, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Laura Schaerer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Stephen M. Techtmann
- Department of Biological Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
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11
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Microbial Enzyme Biotechnology to Reach Plastic Waste Circularity: Current Status, Problems and Perspectives. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24043877. [PMID: 36835289 PMCID: PMC9967032 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24043877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2023] [Revised: 02/08/2023] [Accepted: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 02/17/2023] Open
Abstract
The accumulation of synthetic plastic waste in the environment has become a global concern. Microbial enzymes (purified or as whole-cell biocatalysts) represent emerging biotechnological tools for waste circularity; they can depolymerize materials into reusable building blocks, but their contribution must be considered within the context of present waste management practices. This review reports on the prospective of biotechnological tools for plastic bio-recycling within the framework of plastic waste management in Europe. Available biotechnology tools can support polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling. However, PET represents only ≈7% of unrecycled plastic waste. Polyurethanes, the principal unrecycled waste fraction, together with other thermosets and more recalcitrant thermoplastics (e.g., polyolefins) are the next plausible target for enzyme-based depolymerization, even if this process is currently effective only on ideal polyester-based polymers. To extend the contribution of biotechnology to plastic circularity, optimization of collection and sorting systems should be considered to feed chemoenzymatic technologies for the treatment of more recalcitrant and mixed polymers. In addition, new bio-based technologies with a lower environmental impact in comparison with the present approaches should be developed to depolymerize (available or new) plastic materials, that should be designed for the required durability and for being susceptible to the action of enzymes.
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Rai R, Ranjan R, Dhar P. Life cycle assessment of transparent wood production using emerging technologies and strategic scale-up framework. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 846:157301. [PMID: 35839879 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2022] [Revised: 07/07/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Transparent wood, a sustainable material, holds the potential to replace conventional petroleum-based polymers because of its renewable and biodegradable properties. It has been recently used for construction, energy storage, flexible electronics, and packaging applications. Life cycle analysis (LCA) of transparent wood would provide the environmental impacts during its production and end-of-life (EOL). The cradle-to-gate analysis of transparent wood suggests that sodium hydroxide, sodium sulfite, hydrogen peroxide-based delignification (NaOH + Na2SO3 + H2O2 method), and epoxy infiltration lead to the lowest environmental impacts. It generates approximately 24 % less global warming potential and about 15 % less terrestrial acidification than sodium chlorite delignification and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) infiltration. The modelled industrial-scale production has lower electricity consumption (by 98.8 %) and environmental impacts than the laboratory scale (28 % less global warming potential and approximately 97 % less human toxicity). The EOL analysis of transparent wood showed reduced ecological impacts (107 times) in comparison to polyethylene, suggesting that it can be commercially adapted to replace conventional petroleum-based materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rohit Rai
- School of Biochemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (BHU), Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India
| | - Rahul Ranjan
- School of Biochemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (BHU), Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India
| | - Prodyut Dhar
- School of Biochemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (BHU), Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India.
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13
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Sullivan KP, Werner AZ, Ramirez KJ, Ellis LD, Bussard JR, Black BA, Brandner DG, Bratti F, Buss BL, Dong X, Haugen SJ, Ingraham MA, Konev MO, Michener WE, Miscall J, Pardo I, Woodworth SP, Guss AM, Román-Leshkov Y, Stahl SS, Beckham GT. Mixed plastics waste valorization through tandem chemical oxidation and biological funneling. Science 2022; 378:207-211. [PMID: 36227984 DOI: 10.1126/science.abo4626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 50.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Mixed plastics waste represents an abundant and largely untapped feedstock for the production of valuable products. The chemical diversity and complexity of these materials, however, present major barriers to realizing this opportunity. In this work, we show that metal-catalyzed autoxidation depolymerizes comingled polymers into a mixture of oxygenated small molecules that are advantaged substrates for biological conversion. We engineer a robust soil bacterium, Pseudomonas putida, to funnel these oxygenated compounds into a single exemplary chemical product, either β-ketoadipate or polyhydroxyalkanoates. This hybrid process establishes a strategy for the selective conversion of mixed plastics waste into useful chemical products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin P Sullivan
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Allison Z Werner
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Kelsey J Ramirez
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Lucas D Ellis
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Jeremy R Bussard
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Brenna A Black
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - David G Brandner
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Felicia Bratti
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Bonnie L Buss
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Xueming Dong
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Stefan J Haugen
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Morgan A Ingraham
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Mikhail O Konev
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - William E Michener
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Joel Miscall
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Isabel Pardo
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Sean P Woodworth
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
| | - Adam M Guss
- BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA.,Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
| | - Yuriy Román-Leshkov
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Shannon S Stahl
- Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Gregg T Beckham
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, CO, USA
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14
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Nicholson SR, Rorrer JE, Singh A, Konev MO, Rorrer NA, Carpenter AC, Jacobsen AJ, Román-Leshkov Y, Beckham GT. The Critical Role of Process Analysis in Chemical Recycling and Upcycling of Waste Plastics. Annu Rev Chem Biomol Eng 2022; 13:301-324. [PMID: 35320697 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-chembioeng-100521-085846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
There is an urgent need for new technologies to enable circularity for synthetic polymers, spurred by the accumulation of waste plastics in landfills and the environment and the contributions of plastics manufacturing to climate change. Chemical recycling is a promising means to convert waste plastics into molecular intermediates that can be remanufactured into new products. Given the growing interest in the development of new chemical recycling approaches, it is critical to evaluate the economics, energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, and other life cycle inventory metrics for emerging processes, relative to the incumbent, linear manufacturing practices employed today. Here we offer specific definitions for classes of chemical recycling and upcycling and describe general process concepts for the chemical recycling of mixed plastics waste. We present a framework for techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment for both closed- and open-loop chemical recycling. Rigorous application of these process analysis tools will be required to enable impactful solutions for the plastics waste problem. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Volume 13 is October 2022. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott R Nicholson
- Grid Planning and Analysis Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado, USA.,BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, Colorado, USA;
| | - Julie E Rorrer
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Avantika Singh
- BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, Colorado, USA; .,Carbon Catalytic Transformation and Scale-Up Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado, USA
| | - Mikhail O Konev
- BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, Colorado, USA; .,Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado, USA
| | - Nicholas A Rorrer
- BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, Colorado, USA; .,Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado, USA
| | - Alberta C Carpenter
- BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, Colorado, USA; .,Strategic Energy Analysis Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado, USA
| | | | - Yuriy Román-Leshkov
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Gregg T Beckham
- BOTTLE Consortium, Golden, Colorado, USA; .,Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado, USA
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