Low-emissions system towards green fuels and high added-value bioactive compounds production based on Gordonia alkanivorans strain 1B biorefinery

In the last decade, several studies have demonstrated the great potential of Gordonia alkanivorans strain 1B in the desulfurization of fossil fuels. This bacterium has the ability to desulfurize dibenzothiophene and its derivatives, or mixtures of these hydrocarbons, using the 4S metabolic pathway which allows the removal of S without compromising the carbon skeleton of the hydrocarbons, thus not affecting their calorific value.

BDS using strain 1B can be an interesting approach to apply to a tire / plastic waste co-pyrolysis system, in order to produce pyrolysis oils with residual sulfur, i.e. green fuels. Since the lack of economic viability is one of the obstacles that can affect the increase in scale-up of BDS, it is necessary to take measures to make this process economically competitive, such as the use of renewable raw materials and the exploitation of products with high commercial value produced by the microorganism.

In this context, the main objective of this project will be the exploration of the G. alkanivorans biorefinery in order to produce green fuels, from the desulfurization of pyrolytic oils produced through the pyrolysis of mixtures of waste tires/plastics and used lubricants oils, and products of high commercial value, such as carotenoids, biosurfactants and other extractable chemicals from the heavy fraction distilled from pyrolysis oils. This innovative project addresses a failure in the current waste value chain, proposing a method for recovering solid urban waste, integrating energy recovery with non-energy biorefineries in a low emissions system.

Start date / End date: 1 October 2018 – 30 September 2021

Project Co-Funded by: