Synthesis and characterization of magnetized poly (styrene-co-divinylbenzene) particles to be used as support for enzyme immobilization

• Grant number: 17/04934-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Effective date (Start): August 01, 2017
• Effective date (End): June 30, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Chemical Engineering
• Acordo de Cooperação: Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES)
• Principal Investigator: Larissa de Freitas
• Grantee: Cintia Maria Rodrigues Rosa
• Host Institution: Escola de Engenharia de Lorena (EEL). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Lorena , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The requirements for industries to operate their processes under sustainable conditions allow the expansion of the use of enzymes as catalysts, since they operate under middle reaction conditions, reducing the generation of residues and by-products. However, the use of enzymes on a large scale is still limited due to its high cost and disadvantages of this type of process, such as the difficulty for biocatalyst recovery, insolubility of the enzyme in some reaction media and enzymatic instability. Thus, an alternative to improve the applicability of the enzymatic process, would be the fixation of these enzymes on solid matrices, enabling their reuse, the maintenance of the catalytic activity for an extended period of time, ease separation of the final product, higher thermal and pH stability. Nowadays different materials (natural, synthetic organic or inorganic and magnetized) have been used as support for the immobilization of enzymes, among them, the magnetized polymer hybrids have shown to be quite interesting for this application, since they present several advantages of operation, such as: high surface area, allowing greater availability to immobilize enzymes; low resistance to mass transfer, making the immobilized enzymes more stable. In addition, easy separation of the magnetic particles can be performed due to the possibility of using an external magnet, allowing the preservation of the immobilized enzyme in comparison to the traditional methods of centrifugation and filtration. In this context, the present project aims to synthesize and characterize styrene-based polymer particles magnetized by co-precipitation of Fe2+ and Fe3+ ions in alkaline media to be used as support for enzyme immobilization. For this purpose, the influence of some factors on suspension polymerization, such as: the use of different cross-linking agents, the study of the appropriate ratio between the organic-aqueous phases, the percentage of the suspending agent and the initiator on the reaction medium, as well as the suitability of the magnetization parameters, aiming at obtaining a solid matrix that presents adequate characteristics for the immobilization of enzymes, such as porosity, mechanical resistance, among others. The synthesized polymeric materials will be characterized morphologically and structurally and further used as a support to immobilize microbial lipase. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

DA SILVA, MATEUS V. C.; SOUZA, AMANDA B.; DE CASTRO, HEIZIR F.; AGUIAR, LEANDRO G.; DE OLIVEIRA, PEDRO C.; DE FREITAS, LARISSA. Synthesis of 2-ethylhexyl oleate catalyzed by Candida antarctica lipase immobilized on a magnetic polymer support in continuous flow. Bioprocess and Biosystems Engineering, v. 43, n. 4, p. 615-623, APR 2020. (17/04934-9, 16/17833-3, 16/10636-8)

ROSA, CINTIA MARIA RODRIGUES; CASAGRANDE DA SILVA, MATEUS VINICIUS; DE AGUIAR, LEANDRO GONCALVES; DE CASTRO, HEIZIR FERREIRA; FREITAS, LARISSA. Prediction and comparison of textural properties of magnetic copolymer supports for enzyme immobilization. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, v. 137, n. 41, MAR 2020. (17/04934-9, 16/17833-3, 16/10636-8)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

ROSA, Cintia Maria Rodrigues. Synthesis and characterization of styrene based particles with magnetic properties for use as an enzyme immobilization matrix. 2019. Master's Dissertation - Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Escola de Engenharia de Lorena (EEL/ASDI) Lorena.