Bobo Liang’s research while affiliated with Xi'an Jiaotong University and other places

Background The dramatic increase in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which causes serious global environmental issues and severe climate changes, has become a global problem of concern in recent decades. Currently, native and/or non-native C1-utilizing microbes have been modified to be able to effectively convert C1-gases (biogas, natural gas, and CO2) into isobutanol via biological routes. Even though the current experimental results are satisfactory in lab-scale research, the techno-economic feasibility of C1 gas-derived isobutanol production at the industrial scale still needs to be analyzed and evaluated, which will be essential for the future industrialization of C1-gas bioconversion. Therefore, techno-economic analyses were conducted in this study with comparisons of capital cost (CAPEX), operating cost (OPEX), and minimum isobutanol selling price (MISP) derived from biogas (scenario #1), natural gas (scenario #2), and CO2 (scenario #3) with systematic economic assessment. Results By calculating capital investments and necessary expenses, the highest CAPEX ($317 MM) and OPEX ($67 MM) were projected in scenario #1 and scenario #2, respectively. Because of the lower CAPEX and OPEX from scenario #3, the results revealed that bioconversion of CO2 into isobutanol temporally exhibited the best economic performance with an MISP of $1.38/kg isobutanol. Furthermore, a single sensitivity analysis with nine different parameters was carried out for the production of CO2-derived isobutanol. The annual plant capacity, gas utilization rate, and substrate cost are the three most important economic-driving forces on the MISP of CO2-derived isobutanol. Finally, a multiple-point sensitivity analysis considering all five parameters simultaneously was performed using ideal targets, which presented the lowest MISP of$0.99/kg in a long-term case study. Conclusions This study provides a comprehensive assessment of the bioconversion of C1-gases into isobutanol in terms of the bioprocess design, mass/energy calculation, capital investment, operating expense, sensitivity analysis, and minimum selling price. Compared with isobutanol derived from biogas and natural gas, the CO2-based isobutanol showed better economic feasibility. A market competitive isobutanol derived from CO2 is predicable with lower CO2 cost, better isobutanol titer, and higher annual capacity. This study will help researchers and decision-makers explore innovative and effective approaches to neutralizing GHGs and focus on key economic-driving forces to improve techno-economic performance.

Background The dramatic increase in emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) has led to an irreversible effect on the ecosystem, which in turn caused significant harm to human beings and other species. Exploring innovative and effective approaches to neutralizing GHGs is urgently needed. Considering the advancement of synthetic biology and the bioconversion process, C1-utilizing cell factories (CUCFs) have been modified to be able to effectively convert C1-gases includes biogas, natural gas, and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) into chemicals or fuels via biological routes, which greatly facilitates the inedible carbon sources used in biomanufacturing, increases the potential value of GHGs and meanwhile reduces the GHG emissions. Process design and resultsEven though the current experimental results are satisfactory in lab-scale research, the evaluation of economic feasibility as well as applications of CUCFs in industrial-scale still need to be analyzed. This study designed three scenarios of CUCFs-based conversion of biogas, natural gas, and CO 2 into isobutanol, the detailed techno-economic analyses of these scenarios were conducted with the comparisons of capital cost, operating cost, and minimum isobutanol selling price (MISP). Results revealed that direct bio-conversion of CO 2 by CUCFs into isobutanol exhibited the best economic performance with a MISP of $1.38/kg isobutanol. The single sensitivity analysis showed that the gas utilization rate, flow rate, and CO 2 cost are the three most significant economic-driving forces on MISP of CO 2 -derived biological isobutanol. Multiple-point sensitivity analysis presented that the MISP for the long-term case can be as low as 0.99$/kg with using ideal targets. Conclusions Our findings provide a comprehensive assessment of bio-conversion of C1-gases via CUCFs to isobutanol in terms of the bioprocess design, mass/energy calculation, capital investment, operating expense, sensitivity analysis, and environmental impact. It is expected that this study may lead to the paradigm shift in isobutanol synthesis with C1-gases as substrates.

Due to the availability of natural gas, shale gas, and flared gas, there is increased interest in converting methane in these gases into commodity chemicals via cost-effective and sustainable processes. Recently, we have demonstrated an efficient process concept converting methane to lactic acid (LA) by methanotrophic bacteria with high carbon flux, pivoting potentials for commercialization. Herein, we present a first-of-kind conceptual design and a techno-economic analysis (TEA) of a biorefinery process with calculated minimum selling prices. This study includes both sensitivity analysis and scenario analysis for key cost drivers and for projecting path forwards in research and development. The analyses reveal that the conversion efficiency, LA product titer, LA productivity, and gas flow rate have the most significant impacts on cost. The MSP varies from $5.83-$2.17/kg LA depending on these key process attributes. Further, a life cycle assessment of this process concept is evaluated and compared to understand the sustainable aspects. In this TEA study, the bio-upgrading process from natural gas to LA presents a potentially promising approach in terms of the feedstock versatility, economic viability, and environmental impact.

Granular activated carbon (GAC) as an economic and robust amorphous material could facilitate the syntrophic metabolism of acetogenesis and methanogenesis during anaerobic digestion of post-consumer substrates. In this study, influences of supplementing GAC on anaerobic co-digestion of brewery waste activated sludge and food waste for the production of methane were investigated by analysing the VFA production, ammonia concentration, pH, oxidation reduction potential, and electrical conductivity. Our data showed that a 45% increase in methane production with adding 1.5% (g/g) GAC was achieved. The maximum amount of 478 mL CH4/g volatile solids (VS)added was recorded along with 64% VS removal efficiency under a high ammonia concentration of 1420 mg L⁻¹. Moreover, the analysis of scanning electron microscopy exhibited the formation of biofilms with the supplement of GAC. Our results elucidate that GAC evidently enriched activities of hydrolysis and acetogenesis and enhanced the electron transfer efficiency for methanogenesis, which improved the production of methane significantly. Our results also demonstrate that the supplementation of GAC is an efficient method for the enhancement of biogas production from post-consumer wastes.

Background: Microalgal starch is regarded as a promising alternative to crop-based starch for biorefinery such as the production of biofuels and bio-based chemicals. The single or separate use of inorganic carbon source, e.g., CO2 and NaHCO3, caused aberrant pH, which restricts the biomass and starch production. The present study applied an in situ CO2-NaHCO3 system to regulate photosynthetic biomass and starch production along with starch quality in a marine green microalga Tetraselmis subcordiformis under nitrogen-depletion (-N) and nitrogen-limitation (±N) conditions. Results: The CO2 (2%)-NaHCO3 (1 g L-1) system stabilized the pH at 7.7 in the -N cultivation, under which the optimal biomass and starch accumulation were achieved. The biomass and starch productivity under -N were improved by 2.1-fold and 1.7-fold, respectively, with 1 g L-1 NaHCO3 addition compared with the one without NaHCO3 addition. NaHCO3 addition alleviated the high-dCO2 inhibition caused by the single CO2 aeration, and provided sufficient effective carbon source HCO3- for the maintenance of adequate photosynthetic efficiency and increase in photoprotection to facilitate the biomass and starch production. The amylose content was also increased by 44% under this CO2-bicarbonate system compared to the single use of CO2. The highest starch productivity of 0.73 g L-1 day-1 under -N cultivation and highest starch concentration of 4.14 g L-1 under ±N cultivation were both achieved with the addition of 1 g L-1 NaHCO3. These levels were comparable to or exceeded the current achievements reported in studies. The addition of 5 g L-1 NaHCO3 under ±N cultivation led to a production of high-amylose starch (59.3% of total starch), which could be used as a source of functional food. Conclusions: The in situ CO2-NaHCO3 system significantly improved the biomass and starch production in T. subcordiformis. It could also regulate the starch quality with varied relative amylose content under different cultivation modes for diverse downstream applications that could promote the economic feasibility of microalgal starch-based biofuel production. Adoption of this system in T. subcordiformis would facilitate the CO2 mitigation couple with its starch-based biorefinery.