Development of a fungal platform for enzymatic cocktail production in an on site manufacture industrial system to hydrolyze lignocellulosic biomass for second generation ethanol production

• Grant number: 20/00442-7
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Innovative Research in Small Business - PIPE
• Start date: March 01, 2023
• End date: November 30, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Microbiology - Applied Microbiology
• Principal Investigator: Roberto Ruller
• Grantee: Roberto Ruller
• Company: Bioflex Agroindustrial S/A
• CNAE: Fabricação de álcool
• Associated researchers: José Antonio Bressiani ; Maria de Lourdes Teixeira de Moraes Polizeli ; Rosymar Coutinho de Lucas
• Associated scholarship(s): 23/02867-3 - Development of a fungal platform for the enzymatic cocktail production using an industrial system on- site-manufacture (OSM), aiming to hydrolyze lignocellulosic biomass for the production of second generation etanol, BP.TT; 23/00716-8 - Development of a fungal platform for the enzymatic cocktail production using an industrial system On- Site-Manufacture (OSM), aiming to hydrolyze lignocellulosic biomass for the production of second generation ethanol, BP.PIPE

Abstract

The production of bioethanol from sugars extracted from sugar cane or corn contributes to both the country's economic development and the environment, as is a renewable resource with net carbon neutral production. However, to improve the use of cultivars already planted in the country, the use of lignocellulosic biomass is an excellent alternative as a carbon source for second generation ethanol production. However, the use of enzymes for enzymatic saccharification of lignocellulose present in this biomass represents one of the largest costs in the business model of an industrial plant, reaching 45% of the ethanol production value. In addition, the supply of enzymes on an industrial scale for saccharification of lignocellulosic biomass is made by only one company in the world, located outside Brazil. Thus, studies on the production of efficient enzymatic cocktails of national technology with good yield of fermentable sugars (C5 and C6 and low cost of production are needed. This project proposes the screening of filament fungi for the production of a holocellulases cocktail. These microorganisms will be evaluated for the possibility of growing in co-cultivation system, in batch bioreactor, using industrial residues as carbon source. Once the enzyme extract is produced, it will be characterized and used for the hydrolysis of sugarcane straw. To increase the yield of the bioprocess, key enzymes will be heterologously expressed for the lignocellulosic biomass conversion process, which will be added to the cocktail generated by co-cultivation. For this, two model systems will be used, the heterologous expression in the yeast Picchia pastoris, besides the expression in the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans. This project aims to develop an enzymatic cocktail production process in an on-site manufacture (OSM) system, which should be implemented in the second generation ethanol production plant of GranBio SA, located in Alagoas, Brazil. (AU)