Techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using E. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidase
Abstract Background The enzymatic conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into fermentable sugars is a promising approach for producing renewable fuels and chemicals. However, the cost and efficiency of the fungal enzyme cocktails that are normally employed in these processes remain a significant bott...
Main Authors: | , , |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
BMC
2018-03-01
|
Series: | Biotechnology for Biofuels |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13068-018-1077-0 |
id |
doaj-051d920a13ef4aceb4da5f8dd89abca4 |
---|---|
record_format |
Article |
spelling |
doaj-051d920a13ef4aceb4da5f8dd89abca42020-11-25T02:33:59ZengBMCBiotechnology for Biofuels1754-68342018-03-0111111310.1186/s13068-018-1077-0Techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using E. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidaseRafael da Gama Ferreira0Adriano Rodrigues Azzoni1Sindelia Freitas2Departamento de Engenharia Química, Escola Politécnica, Universidade de São PauloDepartamento de Engenharia Química, Escola Politécnica, Universidade de São PauloLaboratório de Ciência e Tecnologia do Bioetanol, Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e MateriaisAbstract Background The enzymatic conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into fermentable sugars is a promising approach for producing renewable fuels and chemicals. However, the cost and efficiency of the fungal enzyme cocktails that are normally employed in these processes remain a significant bottleneck. A potential route to increase hydrolysis yields and thereby reduce the hydrolysis costs would be to supplement the fungal enzymes with their lacking enzymatic activities, such as β-glucosidase. In this context, it is not clear from the literature whether recombinant E. coli could be a cost-effective platform for the production of some of these low-value enzymes, especially in the case of on-site production. Here, we present a conceptual design and techno-economic evaluation of the production of a low-cost industrial enzyme using recombinant E. coli. Results In a simulated baseline scenario for β-glucosidase demand in a hypothetical second-generation ethanol (2G) plant in Brazil, we found that the production cost (316 US$/kg) was higher than what is commonly assumed in the literature for fungal enzymes, owing especially to the facility-dependent costs (45%) and to consumables (23%) and raw materials (25%). Sensitivity analyses of process scale, inoculation volume, and volumetric productivity indicated that optimized conditions may promote a dramatic reduction in enzyme cost and also revealed the most relevant factors affecting production costs. Conclusions Despite the considerable technical and economic uncertainties that surround 2G ethanol and the large-scale production of low-cost recombinant enzymes, this work sheds light on some relevant questions and supports future studies in this field. In particular, we conclude that process optimization, on many fronts, may strongly reduce the costs of E. coli recombinant enzymes, in the context of tailor-made enzymatic cocktails for 2G ethanol production.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13068-018-1077-0Industrial enzymesRecombinant E. coliTechno-economic analysisCellulasesβ-GlucosidaseProcess simulation |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Rafael da Gama Ferreira Adriano Rodrigues Azzoni Sindelia Freitas |
spellingShingle |
Rafael da Gama Ferreira Adriano Rodrigues Azzoni Sindelia Freitas Techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using E. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidase Biotechnology for Biofuels Industrial enzymes Recombinant E. coli Techno-economic analysis Cellulases β-Glucosidase Process simulation |
author_facet |
Rafael da Gama Ferreira Adriano Rodrigues Azzoni Sindelia Freitas |
author_sort |
Rafael da Gama Ferreira |
title |
Techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using E. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidase |
title_short |
Techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using E. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidase |
title_full |
Techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using E. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidase |
title_fullStr |
Techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using E. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidase |
title_full_unstemmed |
Techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using E. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidase |
title_sort |
techno-economic analysis of the industrial production of a low-cost enzyme using e. coli: the case of recombinant β-glucosidase |
publisher |
BMC |
series |
Biotechnology for Biofuels |
issn |
1754-6834 |
publishDate |
2018-03-01 |
description |
Abstract Background The enzymatic conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into fermentable sugars is a promising approach for producing renewable fuels and chemicals. However, the cost and efficiency of the fungal enzyme cocktails that are normally employed in these processes remain a significant bottleneck. A potential route to increase hydrolysis yields and thereby reduce the hydrolysis costs would be to supplement the fungal enzymes with their lacking enzymatic activities, such as β-glucosidase. In this context, it is not clear from the literature whether recombinant E. coli could be a cost-effective platform for the production of some of these low-value enzymes, especially in the case of on-site production. Here, we present a conceptual design and techno-economic evaluation of the production of a low-cost industrial enzyme using recombinant E. coli. Results In a simulated baseline scenario for β-glucosidase demand in a hypothetical second-generation ethanol (2G) plant in Brazil, we found that the production cost (316 US$/kg) was higher than what is commonly assumed in the literature for fungal enzymes, owing especially to the facility-dependent costs (45%) and to consumables (23%) and raw materials (25%). Sensitivity analyses of process scale, inoculation volume, and volumetric productivity indicated that optimized conditions may promote a dramatic reduction in enzyme cost and also revealed the most relevant factors affecting production costs. Conclusions Despite the considerable technical and economic uncertainties that surround 2G ethanol and the large-scale production of low-cost recombinant enzymes, this work sheds light on some relevant questions and supports future studies in this field. In particular, we conclude that process optimization, on many fronts, may strongly reduce the costs of E. coli recombinant enzymes, in the context of tailor-made enzymatic cocktails for 2G ethanol production. |
topic |
Industrial enzymes Recombinant E. coli Techno-economic analysis Cellulases β-Glucosidase Process simulation |
url |
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13068-018-1077-0 |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT rafaeldagamaferreira technoeconomicanalysisoftheindustrialproductionofalowcostenzymeusingecolithecaseofrecombinantbglucosidase AT adrianorodriguesazzoni technoeconomicanalysisoftheindustrialproductionofalowcostenzymeusingecolithecaseofrecombinantbglucosidase AT sindeliafreitas technoeconomicanalysisoftheindustrialproductionofalowcostenzymeusingecolithecaseofrecombinantbglucosidase |
_version_ |
1724811022850588672 |