Formation and properties of hemiesters of carbonic acid in aqueous medium
| Grant number: | 15/14905-0 |
| Support type: | Program for Research on Bioenergy (BIOEN) - Regular Program Grants |
| Duration: | May 01, 2016 - April 30, 2018 |
| Field of knowledge: | Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry |
| Principal Investigator: | Pedro Miguel Vidinha Gomes |
| Grantee: | Pedro Miguel Vidinha Gomes |
| Home Institution: | Instituto de Química (IQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo, SP, Brazil |
| Assoc. researchers: | Liane Marcia Rossi |
Abstract
The aim of this project concerns the development of a biocatalytic process for the valorization of CO2 that could be integrated in a broader biorefinery strategy. The development of this concept will be focused on the biocatalytic reduction of CO2 to methanol. To accomplish this goal we intend to design a strategy based on three NADH dependent dehydrogenases namely, formate dehydrogenase (FateDH), formaldehyde dehydrogenase (FaldDH) and alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), that reduces CO2 to methanol in three reaction steps. The core of this strategy is based on the development of a membrane that works not only as an enzyme immobilization matrix but also as a good medium for NAD+ regeneration. This membrane will held the biocatalytic system for the reduction of carbon dioxide and the NAD+ catalytic regeneration system based on H2. Ion jelly, a material that results from the combination of gelatin with an ionic liquid (IL), will be used to modify the surface of a given porous membrane (e.g. cellulose). This material was chosen due to its physical-chemical properties and also because it can be produced from an IL that solvates considerable amounts of CO2. This latter issue is one of the major drawbacks of this process due to the low solubility of CO2 in aqueous media. The strategy that suggested in this project will enable to address this major limitation. (AU)