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Environmental Engineering of Biopolymers from Renewable Resources
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Environmental Engineering of Biopolymers from Renewable Resources

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Chemical Engineering and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 November 2022) | Viewed by 5000

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Francesco Valentino

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics, “Cà Foscari” University of Venice, 30172 Mestre-Venice, Italy
Interests: circular economy; biorefinery; renewable feedstock; wastewater; anaerobic digestion; dark fermentation; biopolymers

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Biodegradable and bio-based plastics production brings a considerable reduction in our dependency on fossil fuels, and in the environmental impacts of oil-based plastics. Hence, the utilization of renewable resources as feedstock for a particular class of biopolymers (e.g., polyhydroxyalkanoates; PHA) can increase the environmental sustainability of the bioprocesses. Based on their thermal/mechanical properties, PHA are the ideal candidate to replace part of the market which is still dominated by fossil fuels plastics. The scope of this Special Issue is to give emphasis on renewable feedstock utilization by mixed and/or pure microbial cultures, as election substrates for PHA synthesis. Particular importance will be dedicated to those aspects related to process optimization, in terms of conversion yield and productivity, as well as possible integration of PHA production within a structured biorefinery context.

The aspect related to biorefinery development is extremely relevant because of the need to introduce concepts like the technical and/or economic feasibility of the process, which are still poorly discussed in the literature. Given these considerations, downstream processing for the development of innovative and environmentally sustainable protocols for PHA extraction/recovery from microbial cells will also be taken into account.

Dr Francesco Valentino
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • polyhydroxyalkanoates
  • biowastes
  • wastewater
  • mixed microbial culture
  • pure culture
  • circular economy
  • biorefinery
  • downstream processing

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Review

19 pages, 3041 KiB  
Review
Microalgae Cultivated under Magnetic Field Action: Insights of an Environmentally Sustainable Approach
by Kricelle Mosquera Deamici, Katarzyna Dziergowska, Pedro Garcia Pereira Silva, Izabela Michalak, Lucielen Oliveira Santos, Jerzy Detyna, Sunita Kataria, Marian Brestic, Mohammad Sarraf and Monirul Islam
Sustainability 2022, 14(20), 13291; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142013291 - 16 Oct 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1965
Abstract
Microalgae and cyanobacteria include procaryotic and eucaryotic photosynthetic micro-organisms that produce biomass rich in biomolecules with a high value. Some examples of these biomolecules are proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, pigments, antioxidants, and vitamins. Currently, microalgae are also considered a good source of biofuel feedstock. [...] Read more.
Microalgae and cyanobacteria include procaryotic and eucaryotic photosynthetic micro-organisms that produce biomass rich in biomolecules with a high value. Some examples of these biomolecules are proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, pigments, antioxidants, and vitamins. Currently, microalgae are also considered a good source of biofuel feedstock. The microalga-based biorefinery approach should be used to promote the sustainability of biomass generation since microalga biomass production can be performed and integrated into a circular bioeconomy structure. To include an environmentally sustainable approach with microalga cultures, it is necessary to develop alternative ways to produce biomass at a low cost, reducing pollution and improving biomass development. Different strategies are being used to achieve more productivity in cultivation, such as magnets in cultures. Magnetic forces can alter microalga metabolism, and this field of study is promising and innovative, yet remains an unexplored area. This review presents the current trends in the magnetic biostimulation of microalgae for the application of cultivated biomass in different areas of biotechnology, biofuel, and bioenergy production, as well as environmental protection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Environmental Engineering of Biopolymers from Renewable Resources)
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29 pages, 1378 KiB  
Review
From Organic Wastes and Hydrocarbons Pollutants to Polyhydroxyalkanoates: Bioconversion by Terrestrial and Marine Bacteria
by Francesca Crisafi, Francesco Valentino, Federico Micolucci and Renata Denaro
Sustainability 2022, 14(14), 8241; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14148241 - 6 Jul 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2377
Abstract
The use of fossil-based plastics has become unsustainable because of the polluting production processes, difficulties for waste management sectors, and high environmental impact. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) are bio-based biodegradable polymers derived from renewable resources and synthesized by bacteria as intracellular energy and carbon storage [...] Read more.
The use of fossil-based plastics has become unsustainable because of the polluting production processes, difficulties for waste management sectors, and high environmental impact. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) are bio-based biodegradable polymers derived from renewable resources and synthesized by bacteria as intracellular energy and carbon storage materials under nutrients or oxygen limitation and through the optimization of cultivation conditions with both pure and mixed culture systems. The PHA properties are affected by the same principles of oil-derived polyolefins, with a broad range of compositions, due to the incorporation of different monomers into the polymer matrix. As a consequence, the properties of such materials are represented by a broad range depending on tunable PHA composition. Producing waste-derived PHA is technically feasible with mixed microbial cultures (MMC), since no sterilization is required; this technology may represent a solution for waste treatment and valorization, and it has recently been developed at the pilot scale level with different process configurations where aerobic microorganisms are usually subjected to a dynamic feeding regime for their selection and to a high organic load for the intracellular accumulation of PHA. In this review, we report on studies on terrestrial and marine bacteria PHA-producers. The available knowledge on PHA production from the use of different kinds of organic wastes, and otherwise, petroleum-polluted natural matrices coupling bioremediation treatment has been explored. The advancements in these areas have been significant; they generally concern the terrestrial environment, where pilot and industrial processes are already established. Recently, marine bacteria have also offered interesting perspectives due to their advantageous effects on production practices, which they can relieve several constraints. Studies on the use of hydrocarbons as carbon sources offer evidence for the feasibility of the bioconversion of fossil-derived plastics into bioplastics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Environmental Engineering of Biopolymers from Renewable Resources)
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