Extremophilic Microbial Processing of Lignocellulosic Feedstocks to Biofuels, Value-Added Products, and Usable Power

313 Pages·2018·6.62 MB·English

by  Rajesh K. Sani

Rajesh K. Sani
Navanietha Krishnaraj Rathinam E ditors
Extremophilic
Microbial Processing of
Lignocellulosic Feedstocks
to Biofuels, Value-Added
Products, and Usable Power
Extremophilic Microbial Processing
of Lignocellulosic Feedstocks to Biofuels,
Value-Added Products, and Usable Power
(cid:129)
Rajesh K. Sani Navanietha Krishnaraj Rathinam
Editors
Extremophilic Microbial
Processing of Lignocellulosic
Feedstocks to Biofuels,
Value-Added Products,
and Usable Power
Editors
RajeshK.Sani NavaniethaKrishnarajRathinam
DepartmentofChemicalandBiological DepartmentofChemicalandBiological
Engineering Engineering
SouthDakotaSchoolofMinesand SouthDakotaSchoolofMinesandTechnology
Technology RapidCity,SouthDakota,USA
RapidCity,SouthDakota,USA
ChemistryandAppliedBiological
Sciences
SouthDakotaSchoolofMinesand
Technology
RapidCity,SouthDakota,USA
ISBN978-3-319-74457-5 ISBN978-3-319-74459-9 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74459-9
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2018943408
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Preface
Microorganismshavebeenanessentialpartofourlives.Theyarecloselyassociated
with the life of other organisms including plants and animals. Though initially the
microorganismswerebelievedtothecausativeagentsofdisease,latertheenormous
benefitsofmicroorganisms for useinfermentationwererealized. The microorgan-
isms are indispensable to day-to-day activities. They closely interact with other
higher organisms and their interactions drive the ecosystem. Any interruptions to
ecologicalbalancewillleadtoirreversibledamagetotheenvironment.Microorgan-
isms havebeenusedforawiderangeofapplications includingagricultural,indus-
trial,environmentalbioremediation,biomining,biofuels,andevenforspacebiology
applications.Withadvancesinresearchinmicrobiology,microorganismshavebeen
realizedaspromisingcandidatesformediatingcatalysisatenhancedratesandatan
economical manner for industrially processes. Slowly, the concept of biochemical
wasevolvedwiththeaimofreplacingthechemicalcatalystswithmicrobialcatalysts
for industrial biotechnologyapplications. Unlike thechemical catalysts, themicro-
organisms can mediate catalysis at the ambient conditions of temperature and
pressure.Themicroorganismscanthriveandoperateatabroaderrangeofoperating
conditions making the microbial process more economical for industrial applica-
tions.Theuseofenzymeshasadvantagessuchassensitivityandselectivity,butthey
haveanarrowrangeofoperatingconditions,andtheyaresensitivetohigher/lower
conditionssuchastemperatureandpH.Microorganisms,ontheotherhand,catalyze
the substrates using a complex set of enzymatic machinery. Although the normal
microorganisms can operate at much broader range of operating conditions than
enzymes, still they have limitations that they cannot operate under extreme condi-
tions.Thislimitationcanbecircumventedbytheuseofextremophiles,whichcanbe
operatedatextremeconditionsoftemperature,pH,pressure,salinity,etc.
Thistextfocusesonthevariousextremophilicbioprocessesfortheconversionof
lignocellulosic biomass and gaseous wastes to biofuels, value-added products, and
biopower. Lignocellulosic biomass is the most abundant feedstock on earth, and it
comes from domestic, industrial, and agricultural sources. As per the Renewable
Chemicals Factsheet of NNFCC consultancy company, it has been estimated that
v
vi Preface
lignin alone constitutes about 50 million tons produced annually from pulp and
paperindustries.Ligninactsasthecementthatrigidlyholdsthehemicelluloseand
cellulose in plant cell wall and hinders the biodegradation process because of its
heterogeneity. Lignin confers recalcitrant nature to the lignocellulosic biomass.
Several physical and chemical methods have been documented in the literature for
the disposal/pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass. However, most of these
methodssufferfromhighcost,needforsophisticatedfacility,environmentalissues,
and difficulties in practical implementation. Burning of these biomasses has been
prevalentindevelopingcountries.Landfillingisanothermajorpracticeofdumping
hugevolumesoflignocellulosicbiomass.Thisleadstothereleaseofnoxiousgases
such as CO, CO2, SO2, CH4, and NOx into the environment which contributes to
globalwarming/climatechange.
Thistextcoverstheapplicationsofvariousextremophilessuchasthermophiles,
psychrophiles, barophiles, acidophiles, and alkaliphiles for the enhanced biodegra-
dation of lignocellulosic biomass for bioenergy applications. Production of lignin-
degrading extremozymes, namely, lignin peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase, and
cellulose-degrading thermozymes, namely, endoglucanase, cellobiohydrolase, and
β-glucosidase,hasbeendocumentedintheliterature.Thereisagrowingdemandfor
theextremophilicprocessesintheindustrialsectorbecauseoftherobustnatureofthe
extremophiles. Extremophilic bioprocessing is widely used for the hydrolysis of
lignocellulosic biomass. The higher growth rate and the catalytic rates will help in
accelerating the rates of hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass in an economical,
eco-friendly, and efficient manner. This book begins with the basic concepts of
microbialprocessesformotivatingthebeginnersandincreasesthepacetowardthe
forthcoming chapters. The book introduces basic concepts about the recalcitrant
nature of the lignocellulosic biomass and their pretreatment processes. This book
includesdifferentindustrialprocessessuchasproductionofbioethanol,biobutanol,
biodiesel,hydrogen,biogas,exopolysaccharides,polyhydroxybutyrates,andvalue-
added products from lignocellulosic biomass. The book also addresses the biocon-
versionofgreenhousegases (e.g.,methane)tovalue-addedproducts.Achapteron
photobiocatalysis for the production of limonene from CO using extremophilic
2
cyanobacteria is also included. Chapters have been included on the Techno-
economicalAssessmentsoftheprocessfortheproductionofbiofuelsfromlignocel-
lulosicbiomass.
The book covers various pretreatment processes for lessening the recalcitrant
nature of the lignocellulosic biomass. In addition, the book provides different
bioprocess characteristics such as reactor design, unit operations, and downstream
processingofthebiofuelsandvalue-addedproducts.Thebookprovidestheknowl-
edgeonengineerextremophilesusinggeneticandmetabolicengineeringstrategies
for enhanced conversion of lignocellulosic feedstocks to biofuels and value-added
products. This book is unique in that it is suited to a wide range of readers in
academia, research, and industry. The book gives a clear understanding on this
upcomingfieldofscienceandengineering ofextremophilicbioprocessesinsucha
waybesidesunderstandingtheconceptthattheywillbeinaposition todesignthe
bioprocesses for production of the biofuels and value-added products. The basic
Preface vii
conceptsinextremophilicbioprocessingareprovidedindetailfortheunderstanding
ofthebeginners.Thetake-homemessageforeachchapterisalsoincludedattheend
ofeverychaptertoimprovethereasoningabilityofthereaderinaspecifictopic.
Chapter 1introducesthebasicconceptsinextremophilebiology.Itdiscussesin
detail the different classification of extremophiles and their applications in
bioenergy, bioremediation, and production of value-added products. It provides
the details on its advantages over chemical and enzymatic process. A brief outline
abouttheextremophilesandextremozymesandtheiradvantagesoverothersarealso
described in this chapter. It covers the various sources of extremozymes such as
thermophiles, psychrophiles, barophiles, acidophiles, alkaliphiles, desiccation-
resistantmicroorganisms,etc.Itemphasizestheneedforknowledge,understanding,
andskillonworkingwithextremophilicenzymes.
Chapter2dealswiththeconversionoflignocellulosicfeedstocksintobioethanol
using extremophiles. Lignocellulosic biomass is the most abundant available feed-
stock,anditsuseformicrobialprocessescangreatlyhelpinloweringdownthecosts
of operation. The chapter provides the advantages of thermophiles for bioethanol
productionandthephysiologyofthermophilicmicroorganisms.Thechaptercovers
the various processes for bioethanol production including pretreatment methods of
lignocellulosic biomass, enzymatic hydrolysis and saccharification, fermentation,
andproductrecovery.Asectiononintegratedprocessesforethanolproductionfrom
lignocellulose addresses the separate hydrolysis and fermentation, simultaneous
saccharification and fermentation and simultaneous saccharification and
co-fermentation, and consolidated bioprocessing. The chapter also covers strain
improvementstrategiessuchasevolutionaryadaptationandgeneticengineeringof
thermophiles.
Chapter 3 covers extremophilic production of biobutanol using lignocellulosic
biomass. Biobutanol has several advantages over ethanol such as higher energy
content, lower water absorption, and better blending ability. The chapter discusses
the fermentative production of butanol including biomass selection for butanol
production, fermentation techniques, pathways, and enzymes. The chapter also
discusses the microorganisms in the production of biobutanol and the role of
recombinantmicroorganismsinimprovingbiobutanolproduction.
Chapter 4 describes in detail the production of biodiesel from extremophilic
microalgae. Algal biomass is one of the promising lipid sources for biodiesel pro-
duction because of its very high photoautotrophic growth rates, CO fixation, and
2
accumulation of carbon storage metabolites such as triglycerols. The chapter
describesstrategiesforharvestingalgaeincludingflocculation,sedimentation,filtra-
tion,centrifugation,anddrying.Thechapteralsodiscussesindetailbioprospecting
algaefromextremophilicsourcesforbiodieselproduction.
Chapter 5 discusses biohydrogen (BioH ) production from lignocellulosic feed-
2
stocks using extremophilic microorganisms. This chapter describes in detail the
different routes of BioH production from lignocellulosic biomass using microor-
2
ganisms including direct process as well as two-stage process. The direct process
involves the production of BioH using single microorganism that is capable of
2
hydrolyzing the cellulose/hemicellulose and producing BioH . The two-stage
2
viii Preface
process,ontheotherhand,involvestwosetsofmicroorganisms,oneforhydrolyzing
the cellulose and the other for producing BioH . The chapter also discusses the
2
production of BioH from lignocellulosic biomass without pretreatment using
2
extremophilesandtheirmolecularmechanismsinBioH production.
2
Chapter 6 describes indetailthe productionof biogas from extremophiles. This
chapter discusses different phases of biogas production, namely hydrolysis,
acidogenesis, acetogenesis, and methanogenesis. Further, the chapter discusses in
detailtheeffectsofdifferentprocessparameterssuchassubstrates,organicloading
rate, hydraulic retention time, temperature, pH, volatile fatty acids, ammonia, and
nutrients.Thechapteralsodiscussesthedifferentbiogasreactorssuchascontinuous
stirredtankreactor(CSTR),UASB(upflowanaerobicsludgeblanketreactor),plug
flow, fixed dome, and floating drum reactors. The chapter discusses psychrophilic
digestionandthermophilicdigestionindetailincludingtheiradvantagesanddisad-
vantages. The different applications of biogas and their economic outlook are also
addressedattheendofthischapter.
Chapter 7 describes in detail the production of biogas from lignocellulosic
biomass. The chapter begins with the recalcitrant nature of the lignocellulosic
biomassanddiscussesindetailthedifferentpretreatmentstrategiesincludingphys-
ical methods such as mechanical treatment, extrusion, stream explosion,
hydrothermolysis, and irradiation and chemical methods such as acid hydrolysis,
alkalinehydrolysis,oxidativepretreatment,ionicliquidpretreatment,andbiological
pretreatment.Thechaptercoversthekeyparametersaffectingthebiogasproduction
such as temperature, reaction medium, carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio, retention time,
agitation,organicloadingrate/totalsolidcontent,feedstockandnutrientconcentra-
tions, inhibitory product, moisture content, and co-digestion. The chapter also
discusses the different analytical methods for quantifying biogas and strategies for
purification.
Chapter8discussesthebioconversionofmethanetovalue-addedproducts.The
chapter describes the different basic concepts about methanotrophic bacteria, their
classification,metabolism,cultivation,andtheirapplications.Thischapterdescribes
the biosas to liquid biofuels (Bio-GTL) and the safety measures. The chapter
discussestheprocessdevelopmentforbiologicalconversionofmethaneintodesired
productsinregardtotheenhancementofmasstransferefficiencyandthedevelop-
ment of bioreactor design, including continuous stirred-tank bioreactor, bubble
column bioreactor, loop and airlift bioreactor, trickle-bed bioreactor, monolithic
biofilmbioreactor,andmembranebiofilmbioreactor.
Chapter 9 describes developing a recombinant cyanobacteria for synthesizing
limonenefromCO .Limoneneisathird-generationbiofuelandusedinjetfueland
2
dieselapplications.Thechapterdiscussesthephysicalproperties,chemicalproper-
ties,sources,andproductionoflimoneneforuseasfuel.Thechapteralsodiscusses
thedifferentmetabolicroutesforisoprenoidsynthesissuchasMVApathway,MEP
pathway, and convergence of MEP and MVA pathways through IPP/DMAPP
Formation. The chapter also discusses the reaction mechanism and conserved
sequences of limonene synthases. The chapter describes in detail engineering
recombinantcyanobacteriaascellularfactoriesforlimoneneproduction.
Preface ix
Chapter10dealswiththeproductionofavalue-addedproduct—exopolysaccharide
(EPS)fromextremophiles.ThechapterdiscussesEPS-producingmicroorganismsand
their biosynthetic pathways. The chapter also discusses different applications of
exopolysaccharidessuchasanti-inflammatory,antiviral,anddrugdeliveryapplications.
The chapter also discusses chemical and structural characterization, purification, com-
positionalanalysis,andmolecularweightdistribution.
Chapter 11 addresses the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from
renewable and waste materials using extremophiles. The chapter discusses the
different extremophilic sources for PHA, its biochemistry, chemical composition,
mechanicalproperties,biodegradability,anditsapplications.Thechapterdiscusses
indetailtheeffectsofdifferentsubstratessuchasglycerolfrombiofuelproductions,
crudeandwasteplantoils,oilmilleffluents,surpluswheyfromthedairyindustry,
wastesfromthesugarindustry,lignocellulosicwastes,andmunicipalwastesonthe
yieldofPHAinametabolicperspective.
Chapter12coverstheconceptsabouttheelectroactivemicroorganismsandtheir
potential to mediate bioelectrocatalysis. The chapter clearly discuses the principle,
construction,operation,andapplicationofmicrobialfuelcells,microbialelectrolytic
cells,microbialdesalinationcells,andmicrobialelectrosynthesis.
Chapter 13 is on the integrated bioprocesses for conversion of lignocellulosic
feedstock to biofuels and value-added bioproducts. The application of CBP of
lignocellulosicbiomassusingextremophilescanaidincost-effectiveproductionof
biofuels. Thischapteraddressesdeveloping an integratedCBPby thecombination
of CBP with several other bioprocesses for high value-added products, such as
biopolymers. The chapter discusses on how recombinant DNA technologies such
asmetabolicengineeringcanhelpinimprovingtheperformanceofCBP.
Chapter14dealswiththeproductionofvalue-addedproductsfromwastesusing
extremophiles in biorefineries. It provides detailed information about the
biorefineries and clearly discusses process modeling, simulation, and optimization
tools.
Overall, these chapters cover the different extremophilic processes for a wide
rangeofapplications.Adequatebasicconceptshavebeenincludedforthebeginners.
RapidCity,SD,USA RajeshK.Sani
NavaniethaKrishnarajRathinam
Contents
1 BioprospectingofExtremophilesforBiotechnologyApplications. . . 1
NavaniethaKrishnarajRathinamandRajeshK.Sani
2 ConversionofLignocellulosicFeedstocksintoBioethanolUsing
Extremophiles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
SeanMichaelScullyandJohannOrlygsson
3 BiobutanolProductionUsingRecombinantMicroorganisms. . . . . . 47
RakheeKhandeparkerandRajeshK.Sani
4 Biodiesel(Microalgae). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
KarenM.Moll,ToddC.Pedersen,RobertD.Gardner,
andBrentM.Peyton
5 BiohydrogenProductionfromLignocellulosicFeedstocks
UsingExtremophiles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
RamanRao,RajeshK.Sani,andSachinKumar
6 BiogasfromExtremophiles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
KarthikRajendranandGergelyForgacs
7 ConversionofLignocellulosicFeedstocksintoBiogas. . . . . . . . . . . 111
RitikaVerma,AbhilashKumarTripathi,andSudhirKumar
8 BioconversionofMethaneforValue-AddedProducts. . . . . . . . . . . 145
QiangFeiandPhilipT.Pienkos
9 SyntheticBiologyEnablesPhotosyntheticProduction
ofLimonenefromCO andH O. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
2 2
CharlesHalfmann,LipingGu,WilliamGibbons,andRuanbaoZhou
10 ExopolysaccharideProductionsfromExtremophiles:
TheChemicalStructuresandTheirBioactivities. . . . .. . . . . . . . .. 189
PaolaDiDonato,AnnaritaPoli,GiuseppinaTommonaro,
GennaroRobertoAbbamondi,andBarbaraNicolaus
xi