Research Development Fellowship. Towards biorefineries based on wastes: efficient enzymatic lignin degradation

Completed

Renewable Energy Sources(Bio-Energy, Production of transport biofuels (incl. Production from wastes))
Renewable Energy Sources(Bio-Energy, Production of other biomass-derived fuels (incl. Production from wastes))

Basic and strategic applied research

BIOLOGICAL AND AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES (Biological Sciences)
PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Chemistry)

Not Cross-cutting

Professor G Stephens
Chemical and Environmental Engineering
University of Nottingham

Fellowship

BBSRC

08 March 2010

07 September 2012

30 months

£144,806

Transport Systems and Vehicles

East Midlands

Research Development Fellowship (RDF)

Professor G Stephens, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Nottingham

This grant is linked to BB/G023581/1.

In this project, I shall develop new methods to use ligninases to break down waste materials to produce feedstocks for chemicals and fuel manufacturing. The biggest problem with using lignin as a feedstock is that it is very insoluble in water, and this restricts contact between ligninolytic enzymes and the substrate. I shall develop new approaches to contact enzymes with lignin by adjusting the physical and chemical properties of the reaction environment. The emphasis will be on non-toxic, environmentally benign methods. The process will also be extended to mixed wastes containing biopolymers and synthetic polymers, so that domestic and industrial wastes can also be used as biorefinery feedstocks. The upstream feedstock processing system will be integrated with downstream fermentation processes and catalytic reactions. Therefore, new, integrated bio- and chemocatalytic cascade reactions will be developed to avoid the need to isolate the intermediates between each step in the process.

22/11/13