Week 1 HW: Final Project Ideas

Knowing that polypropylene is obtained through the polymerization of propylene (propene), a gas extracted as a by-product of petroleum refining or ethylene production and that the petroleum industry is going through a crisis because of the geopolitical, economic and environmental impact that it has, I am thinking on the fabrication of a biopolymer that can have a minor environmental and agroindustrial impact. The use of polypropylene in nursery farms is very common. We can see it in pots, covering blankets and sometimes in the water conducts that give maintenance to the plants etc. It is cheap but it has repercussions like its biodegradation that can produce microplastics.

Living system Cupriavidus necator Bacillus megaterium Burkholderia cepacia Azotobacter vinelandii Pseudomonas oleovorans These microorganisms are well known for their production of biopolymers in certain conditions such as substrates or broths with excess carbon and a limited concentration of nitrogen, oxygen or phosphate. So by this information we can conclude the need to use of a bioreactor.

How would I use automation? “…the pH was maintained at 6.8 ± 0.1 through the controlled addition of 1 M H₃PO₄ and 2 M NaOH (or 25% ammonia when used as the nitrogen source, with pH control coupled to the nitrogen feed), at a constant temperature of 30°C and with agitation provided by six-blade Rushton-type impellers.” The use of IA by the identification of different behaviors or products in the bioreactor because of the algorithm built by and for it can be a lot of help not just for preventing shrinkage but for also an efficient use of time, substrate, and labor.

Manufacturing

Quick Summary Table (text format):

Benchtop Scale (Laboratory)

Volume: 1–10 L Equipment cost: $11,000–$80,000 USD Build/lead time: 2–4 months

Pilot Scale

Volume: 100–1,000 L Equipment cost: $50,000–$500,000+ USD Build time: 6–18 months (general industry estimate)

Industrial Scale

Volume: ~300–400 m³ (full plant) Equipment cost: ~$60M+ USD total capital (of which ~$10M corresponds to equipment alone) Build time: 2–4 years (general estimate, not confirmed by a PHA-specific source) Table 1. Claude IA

What I don’t know yet? Programming for a bioreactor system. Design and improvement of bioreactors. Development and improvement of computer programs that use artificial intelligence. If my project is economically viable.

Reference(s): Wwwroyma. (s. f.). How is polypropylene produced? https://roymaplast.com/en/como-se-obtiene-el-polipropileno/ Rittmann, S., et al. Substrate-Flexible Two-Stage Fed-Batch Cultivations for the Production of the PHA Copolymer P(HB-co-HHx) With Cupriavidus necator Re2058/pCB113. Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology (2021). PMC8020817. Pavan, F.A., et al. (2019). Economic analysis of polyhydroxybutyrate production by Cupriavidus necator using different routes for product recovery. Biochemical Engineering Journal. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1369703X19300889 Sirohi, R., et al. (2022). A Review on Enhancing Cupriavidus necator Fermentation for Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) Production From Low-Cost Carbon Sources. Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, 10:946085. https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2022.946085