Application of Immersed Membrane Bioreactor for Semi-Continuous Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Organic Waste-Based Volatile Fatty Acids
Volatile fatty acids (VFAs) appear to be an economical carbon feedstock for the cost-effective production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). The use of VFAs, however, could impose a drawback of substrate inhibition at high concentrations, resulting in low microbial PHA productivity in batch cultivatio...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Membranes |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/13/6/569 |
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| author | Danh H. Vu Amir Mahboubi Andrew Root Ivo Heinmaa Mohammad J. Taherzadeh Dan Åkesson |
| author_facet | Danh H. Vu Amir Mahboubi Andrew Root Ivo Heinmaa Mohammad J. Taherzadeh Dan Åkesson |
| author_sort | Danh H. Vu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Volatile fatty acids (VFAs) appear to be an economical carbon feedstock for the cost-effective production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). The use of VFAs, however, could impose a drawback of substrate inhibition at high concentrations, resulting in low microbial PHA productivity in batch cultivations. In this regard, retaining high cell density using immersed membrane bioreactor (iMBR) in a (semi-) continuous process could enhance production yields. In this study, an iMBR with a flat-sheet membrane was applied for semi-continuous cultivation and recovery of <i>Cupriavidus necator</i> in a bench-scale bioreactor using VFAs as the sole carbon source. The cultivation was prolonged up to 128 h under an interval feed of 5 g/L VFAs at a dilution rate of 0.15 (d<sup>−1</sup>), yielding a maximum biomass and PHA production of 6.6 and 2.8 g/L, respectively. Potato liquor and apple pomace-based VFAs with a total concentration of 8.8 g/L were also successfully used in the iMBR, rendering the highest PHA content of 1.3 g/L after 128 h of cultivation. The PHAs obtained from both synthetic and real VFA effluents were affirmed to be poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) with a crystallinity degree of 23.8 and 9.6%, respectively. The application of iMBR could open an opportunity for semi-continuous production of PHA, increasing the feasibility of upscaling PHA production using waste-based VFAs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:10:55Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f2f8568f3ab44a59b93e00a19319349a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-0375 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:10:55Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Membranes |
| spelling | doaj.art-f2f8568f3ab44a59b93e00a19319349a2023-11-18T11:33:27ZengMDPI AGMembranes2077-03752023-05-0113656910.3390/membranes13060569Application of Immersed Membrane Bioreactor for Semi-Continuous Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Organic Waste-Based Volatile Fatty AcidsDanh H. Vu0Amir Mahboubi1Andrew Root2Ivo Heinmaa3Mohammad J. Taherzadeh4Dan Åkesson5Swedish Centre for Resource Recovery, University of Borås, 501 90 Borås, SwedenSwedish Centre for Resource Recovery, University of Borås, 501 90 Borås, SwedenMagSol, Tuhkanummenkuja 2, 00970 Helsinki, FinlandNational Institute of Chemical Physics and Biophysics, 12618 Tallinn, EstoniaSwedish Centre for Resource Recovery, University of Borås, 501 90 Borås, SwedenSwedish Centre for Resource Recovery, University of Borås, 501 90 Borås, SwedenVolatile fatty acids (VFAs) appear to be an economical carbon feedstock for the cost-effective production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). The use of VFAs, however, could impose a drawback of substrate inhibition at high concentrations, resulting in low microbial PHA productivity in batch cultivations. In this regard, retaining high cell density using immersed membrane bioreactor (iMBR) in a (semi-) continuous process could enhance production yields. In this study, an iMBR with a flat-sheet membrane was applied for semi-continuous cultivation and recovery of <i>Cupriavidus necator</i> in a bench-scale bioreactor using VFAs as the sole carbon source. The cultivation was prolonged up to 128 h under an interval feed of 5 g/L VFAs at a dilution rate of 0.15 (d<sup>−1</sup>), yielding a maximum biomass and PHA production of 6.6 and 2.8 g/L, respectively. Potato liquor and apple pomace-based VFAs with a total concentration of 8.8 g/L were also successfully used in the iMBR, rendering the highest PHA content of 1.3 g/L after 128 h of cultivation. The PHAs obtained from both synthetic and real VFA effluents were affirmed to be poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) with a crystallinity degree of 23.8 and 9.6%, respectively. The application of iMBR could open an opportunity for semi-continuous production of PHA, increasing the feasibility of upscaling PHA production using waste-based VFAs.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/13/6/569biopolymerimmersed membrane reactorpolyhydroxyalkanoatesvolatile fatty acids |
| spellingShingle | Danh H. Vu Amir Mahboubi Andrew Root Ivo Heinmaa Mohammad J. Taherzadeh Dan Åkesson Application of Immersed Membrane Bioreactor for Semi-Continuous Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Organic Waste-Based Volatile Fatty Acids Membranes biopolymer immersed membrane reactor polyhydroxyalkanoates volatile fatty acids |
| title | Application of Immersed Membrane Bioreactor for Semi-Continuous Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Organic Waste-Based Volatile Fatty Acids |
| title_full | Application of Immersed Membrane Bioreactor for Semi-Continuous Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Organic Waste-Based Volatile Fatty Acids |
| title_fullStr | Application of Immersed Membrane Bioreactor for Semi-Continuous Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Organic Waste-Based Volatile Fatty Acids |
| title_full_unstemmed | Application of Immersed Membrane Bioreactor for Semi-Continuous Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Organic Waste-Based Volatile Fatty Acids |
| title_short | Application of Immersed Membrane Bioreactor for Semi-Continuous Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Organic Waste-Based Volatile Fatty Acids |
| title_sort | application of immersed membrane bioreactor for semi continuous production of polyhydroxyalkanoates from organic waste based volatile fatty acids |
| topic | biopolymer immersed membrane reactor polyhydroxyalkanoates volatile fatty acids |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/13/6/569 |
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