| Title |
Polyethylene Valorization by Combined Chemical Catalysis with Bioconversion by Plastic-Enriched Microbial Consortia |
| ID_Doc |
24351 |
| Authors |
Gregory, GJ; Wang, C; Sadula, S; Koval, S; Lobo, RF; Vlachos, DG; Papoutsakis, ET |
| Title |
Polyethylene Valorization by Combined Chemical Catalysis with Bioconversion by Plastic-Enriched Microbial Consortia |
| Year |
2023 |
| Published |
|
| DOI |
10.1021/acssuschemeng.2c07461 |
| Abstract |
There are few reports of microbial deconstruction or functionalization of the recalcitrant backbone of polyolefins. However, microbes can utilize polyolefin deconstruction products, including n-alkanes. Here, we combined chemical catalysis with bioconversion to valorize polyethylene (PE) deconstruction products. High-density PE (HDPE) was deconstructed via hydrogenolysis over a ruthenium on carbon catalyst. The resulting n-alkane mixture (C4-C35) was utilized as a feedstock for microbial consortia derived from soil from local recycling plants. We found two consortia that utilized the PE-deconstruction product mix as a sole carbon source. We adapted the consortia on a commercially available n-alkane mix to reduce the number of species present and enrich for enhanced alkane utilization. Both resulting enriched consortia utilized the PE-deconstruction product mix more effectively than the original (parent) consortia. The predominant metabolite produced from a model alkane hexadecane by both enriched consortia was a C16-C16 wax ester. Wax esters have considerable industrial value, with longer chain lengths (C32-C36) having the highest value. We identified two Rhodococcus aetherivorans strains that grow well on C24, indicating that this species is important for the functionalization of long-chain alkanes. This work demonstrates that enriched consortia from plastic-enriched environments can be combined with chemical catalysis to valorize PE. |
| Author Keywords |
plastics; biodegradation; polyolefins; valorization; circular economy; biocatalysis; environmental consortia |
| Index Keywords |
Index Keywords |
| Document Type |
Other |
| Open Access |
Open Access |
| Source |
Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED) |
| EID |
WOS:000934895200001 |
| WoS Category |
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary; Green & Sustainable Science & Technology; Engineering, Chemical |
| Research Area |
Chemistry; Science & Technology - Other Topics; Engineering |
| PDF |
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/biorxiv/early/2022/12/20/2022.12.20.521199.full.pdf
|