Succinic acid

BOSTON, Nov. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In the color spectrum of biotechnology, white biotechnology stands out as the industrial production and processing of chemicals, materials, and energy via cell factories like bacteria and yeast. In the bioeconomy, in which society uses renewable biological resources to create biobased products, white biotechnology acts as a critical technology driver. It not only reduces society's dependence on fossil fuels but also consumes less energy, generates minimal waste, and produces more environmentally friendly products. With primary chemical production contributing 935 million metric tonnes of direct CO2 emissions in 2022, the advancement of white biotechnology is critical to creating more sustainable alternatives to traditional petroleum-based chemical manufacturing. Certain compounds have been biomanufactured on an industrial scale for years, if not decades, including: Ethanol for biofuels Lactic acid for PLA (polylactic acid) Itaconic acid Succinic acid Advancements in biotechnology tools and processes have expanded the scope of what can be created through industrial biomanufacturing, encompassing a diverse range of molecules and compounds with applications spanning from lubricants to packaging, textiles to additives, adhesives to leather, and more. Within this diverse range, an emerging subset of molecules have attracted the interest of numerous companies, both well-funded startups and multinational corporations. IDTechEx has analyzed over thirty-five different molecules and compounds in their market research report "White Biotechnology 2024-2034"; here are some of the most interesting molecules whose biomanufacturing development is worth monitoring. Emerging molecules produced through white biotechnology Polyamide precursors: one emerging category of biomanufactured molecules are key precursors for polyamides like PA 6 and PA 66. With hundreds of millions of tonnes of nylon produced globally every year, nylons represent a massive potential market for white biotechnology to address. Currently, precursors such as caprolactam and hexamethylenediamine (HMDA) are only produced through a petrochemical route, but California-based biotechnology company Geno has developed biosynthetic production pathways for such polyamide precursors. They are currently pursuing the commercialization of biosynthetic PA precursors with major chemical manufacturers as partners, including Covestro, Aquafil, and Asahi Kasei. Spider silk: spider silk, referring to the protein fibers spun by spiders (spideroin), is an incredibly versatile and high-performance material. Its properties include high tensile strength, high stretchability, high toughness, and a high strength-to-weight ratio. To access these desirable properties for other applications, several companies have developed genetically engineered organisms (E.coli, yeast, or silkworms) to biomanufacture spider silk at scale. Such companies include Kraig Biocraft, AMSilk, and Spiber, the latter of which has raised well over $300 million in funding to scale the production of their spider silk. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs): PHAs are a class of polyesters biosynthesized via fermentation. PHAs are produced by a wide range of microorganisms via multiple biosynthetic pathways that utilize glucose or fatty acids derived from numerous sources (i.e., organic matter and waste) as feedstock. PHAs are unique in that they are directly synthesized as polymers by the micro-organism, rather than the micro-organism synthesizing a biobased monomer that is then isolated and polymerized ex-vivo. The three key benefits of PHAs are their bio-origin, sustainability, and biodegradability. While PHAs have been on the radar as biodegradable alternatives to petroleum plastics for years, numerous companies are now leveling up their scale of PHA production to meet the increased demand for sustainable plastics. Fatty acids: Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs) have extensive applications in the chemical industry as precursors to numerous compounds (i.e., alcohols, triglycerides, esters, amines, amides, etc.). They are typically produced petrochemically, but several companies, such as Afyren and ChainCraft, are pursuing the production of fatty acids via anaerobic digestion. Their use of heterogeneous biomass (i.e., municipal organic waste, sewage sludge) as feedstock is notable, as heterogeneous biomass are typically difficult to use for industrial fermentation applications. Should they be able to scale their production capacity to cost-competitive levels, they have the ability to address a broad market in chemical production. Mevalonic acid: mevalonic acid is a key chemical intermediate for isoprene, the main component of natural rubber; it can also act as a precursor for sustainable aviation fuel, solvents, cosmetics, and textiles. One startup, Visolis, used synthetic biology to develop a microbe that biosynthesizes mevalonic acid and is now looking to push into the production of biobased isoprene and sustainable aviation fuel; they already produce skin care products utilizing mevalonic acid as an ingredient. Though in the early stages of production, mevalonic acid presents an interesting opportunity, given its broad applicability across different verticals. These profiled molecules are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the new types of molecules being produced through white biotechnology. For more extensive coverage, including assessments of over thirty-five different molecules and compounds, please see IDTechEx's comprehensive report on "White Biotechnology 2024-2034". IDTechEx white biotechnology market forecast IDTechEx's "White Biotechnology 2024-2034" report carefully explores the white biotechnology landscape, including evaluations of over 35 biomanufactured molecules, looking at critical aspects like their technology readiness level, key technical challenges, commercial players, applications, and more. IDTechEx also provides market forecasts that carefully segment the market by ten major biomanufactured molecules based on global production capacity, which are extrapolated in the 10-year forecast to explore each segment's current capacity and potential for growth. Additionally, IDTechEx provides a comprehensive examination of critical application areas, a discussion of technology trends, and in-depth market and economic analysis. For further information on this market, including discussion on over 100 players, analysis of numerous biomanufacturing processes, and granular 10-year market forecasts, see the IDTechEx report, "White Biotechnology 2024-2034". For more information on this IDTechEx report, including downloadable sample pages, please visit . For the full portfolio of sustainability market research available from IDTechEx, please visit . Upcoming free-to-attend webinar Creating a Circular Economy: Emerging Sustainable Materials to Watch in 2024 A team of analysts from IDTechEx will present a free-to-attend webinar on the topic on Tuesday 21 November 2023 - Creating a Circular Economy: Emerging Sustainable Materials to Watch in 2024. As major brands and governments continue to adopt and refine their sustainability roadmaps, more sustainable materials are urgently needed to fulfill these sustainability targets. The necessity of replacing plastics with greener alternatives is especially relevant, as governments increasingly crack down on unnecessary plastic usage in a bid to reduce the environmental and health impacts of plastics. Such regulations have reached the global level, as the United Nations is currently developing a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution. The question is, which emerging technologies will be able to address this demand for sustainable plastic alternatives in numerous fields, such as fashion, packaging, and automotive? IDTechEx has explored this question through its sustainability market research portfolio and has identified several emerging sustainable material technologies of high interest. So, in this webinar, IDTechEx will provide a comprehensive overview of the most intriguing emerging sustainable technologies, as well as insights into their recent progress and outlook for 2024. The technology areas covered in this webinar include: White Biotechnology Sustainable Plastic Packaging CO2 Utilization for Chemicals and Materials Emerging Alternative Leathers Please click here to find out more and register your place on one of our three sessions. About IDTechEx IDTechEx guides your strategic business decisions through its Research, Subscription and Consultancy products, helping you profit from emerging technologies. For more information, contact [email protected] or visit . Images download: Media contact: Lucy Rogers Marketing and Sales Administrator [email protected] +44(0)1223 812300 Social media links: Twitter: LinkedIn: Logo: SOURCE IDTechEx

In a breakthrough for environmentally friendly chemical production, researchers have developed an economical way to make succinic acid, an important industrial chemical, from sugarcane. The team has created a cost-effective, end-to-end pipeline for this valuable organic acid by engineering a tough, acid-tolerant yeast as the fermenting agent, avoiding costly steps in downstream processing. Succinic acid is a widely used additive for food and beverages and has diverse applications in agricultural and pharmaceutical products. This same pipeline can be used to produce other industrially important organic acids from crops rather than petroleum-based processes, significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In a breakthrough for environmentally friendly chemical production, researchers at the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI) have developed an economical way to make succinic acid, an important industrial chemical, from sugarcane. The team of University of Illinois and Princeton University researchers created a cost-effective, end-to-end pipeline for this valuable organic acid by engineering a tough, acid-tolerant yeast as the fermenting agent, avoiding costly steps in downstream processing. Succinic acid is a widely used additive for food and beverages and has diverse applications in agricultural and pharmaceutical products. This same pipeline can be used to produce other industrially important organic acids targeted by CABBI in its work to develop sustainable biofuels and biochemicals from crops, said co-author Huimin Zhao, CABBI's Conversion Theme Leader and Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (ChBE) at Illinois. To reduce reliance on fossil fuels, Conversion researchers are deploying microbes to convert plant biomass into chemicals used in everyday products as an alternative to conventional petroleum-based production. "This will serve as a blueprint for all the other metabolic engineering products in CABBI," said Zhao, one of several CABBI principal investigators on the project. Other PIs included Vijay Singh, CABBI's Deputy Director for Science & Technology, Distinguished and Founder Professor of Agricultural and Biological Engineering (ABE), and Executive Director of the Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory (IBRL) at Illinois; Jeremy Guest, Associate Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering (CEE) at Illinois and part of CABBI's Sustainability Theme; and Conversion Deputy Theme Leader Joshua Rabinowitz, Professor of Chemistry and the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics at Princeton. The study, published in Nature Communications, is led by CABBI -- a U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Research Center -- and funded by BioMADE, a Manufacturing Innovation Institute with more than 230 member organizations around the country, including companies, universities, and nonprofit organizations. BioMADE was catalyzed by the U.S. Department of Defense and works to secure America's future through bioindustrial manufacturing innovation, education, and collaboration. The work builds on years of research on succinic acid production by Zhao and his colleagues using Issatchenkia orientalis, an unconventional yeast ideal for making organic acids. I. orientalis has the unique ability to thrive in low-pH, or acidic, conditions. Most organisms require a neutral pH environment to survive, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a more conventional yeast, or Escherichia coli bacteria. Both have been used by companies and labs to produce succinic acid but proved to be too costly, so efforts to scale up production have failed, Zhao said. Those microorganisms require the addition of a base to neutralize the toxic acidic conditions so they can continue making succinic acid. But that generates side products, such as gypsum or calcium sulfate, which have to be separated out at the end of the pipeline to purify the product, driving up downstream processing costs. "One of the bottlenecks in the production of organic acids is the separation cost," Zhao said. "We have to add a lot of base to keep the pH near neutral, between 6 to 7." With I. orientalis, however, "the organism lives happily at a pH of 3 to 4," so the additives are not required, Zhao said. "In the end, that significantly reduces costs." The CABBI researchers also did extensive metabolic engineering to rewire I. orientalis to produce robust levels of succinic acid -- higher than either S. cerevisiae or E. coli, he said. Using metabolic flux analysis from Rabinowitz's lab, they identified the steps in the yeast's metabolism that limited the production of succinic acid. One key roadblock: Native I. orientalis can't utilize the sucrose from sugarcane. So an enzyme was added that could break down sucrose from the sugarcane juice into glucose and fructose to make succinic acid. Other genes were introduced to overproduce succinic acid. Working with Singh's group at IBRL, the team then scaled up succinic acid production using industrially relevant equipment to conduct an end-to-end integration of the process. The pilot-scale work showed the new strains could produce up to 110 g/L of succinic acid and, after batch fermentation and downstream processing, an overall yield of 64% -- impressive results having commercial significance, Singh said. The combination of higher production levels through genetic engineering and lower costs from the elimination of downstream separation makes the process "very attractive," Zhao said. "That's why the pipeline is so economical, at least at this pilot scale." The final step was working with Guest to simulate a full end-to-end, low-pH succinic acid production pipeline, using the open-source software platform BioSTEAM developed by his group. The techno-economic analysis (TEA) and life cycle assessment showed the process was financially viable and could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 34% to 90% relative to fossil fuel-based production processes. "These advancements in metabolic engineering could have large-scale benefits, simultaneously driving down costs and environmental impacts in support of a circular bioeconomy," Guest said. The process emits less carbon dioxide (CO2) than conventional petroleum-based chemical processing. Plants like sugarcane also soak up carbon, and CO2 can be used as a substrate for the process, further reducing its carbon footprint. "It's definitely more environmentally friendly. That's the premise for all the research in CABBI: using renewable resources to make chemicals and fuels," Zhao said. Researchers plan further scale-up studies soon to support commercialization of the succinic acid production process. The work will also be a template for production of other CABBI products using I. orientalis, including 3-hydroxypropionic acid (3-HP). The market for 3-HP, used in components of disposable diapers and sealants, exceeds $1 billion, and research to date shows huge promise, Zhao said. "We expect I. orientalis can serve as a general industrial platform for the production of a wide variety of organic acids," said Vinh Tran, primary author on the paper and a Ph.D. student in ChBE. The project involved several lab groups and contributions from all three themes of CABBI's research -- using sugarcane juice from the Feedstock Production research team, metabolic research and bioprocessing facilities from the Conversion team, and economic and environmental analysis from the Sustainability team. Co-authors included CABBI researchers Sarang Bhagwat of CEE and Yihui Shen of the Department of Chemistry at Princeton; Somesh Mishra of ABE; Saman Shafaei, Shih-I Tan, Zia Fatma, and Benjamin Crosly of ChBE; and Jayne Allen of CEE.