EFRI HyBi: Algal Oils to 'Drop-in' Replacements for Petroleum-derived Transportation Fuels

摘要PI名称：威廉·罗伯茨机构：北卡罗来纳州州立大学提案编号：0937721 EFRI：EFRI HyBi：藻类油“下降”替代石油衍生运输燃料这个奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）北卡罗来纳州？EFRI HyBi将开发技术可行性，并展示独特的多步催化工艺的可扩展性，将各种脂肪/油/脂质转化为化学和物理性质与石油类似的替代运输燃料，从而大大减少基础设施的复杂性。藻类油是生物燃料生产的理想原料，具有非常高的生产密度和使用边际水（城市垃圾，微咸水等）和再利用燃煤电厂排放的CO2的能力。然而，有一些技术挑战与有效利用藻类？作为原料的固有优势。使用紧密耦合的协同方法，采用工程和生物学教师，该团队将：a）使用合成生物学方法从基因上改变海洋微藻物种（杜氏盐藻）生产最理想的原料并优化转化为运输燃料的生产，B）开发创新的和变革性的方法从藻类中提取这些脂质和脂肪酸，c）优化脱羧催化剂，和d）优化整个生物精炼工艺，包括最大化热效率和共产物和副产物的利用。将非粮食、可再生原料转化为高质量碳氢化合物生物燃料的新技术将扩大科学发现，并为生物学家和工程师进一步探索潜在的替代燃料创造框架、协同作用和动力。基因增强和环境控制将用于最大限度地生产最有益的脂质，包括合成生物学方法来增强脂肪酸合成。探索创新和非常有效的脂质提取方法，包括对所产生的脂肪酸进行变革性连续提取，将改变藻类作为生物燃料原料的科学发展。我们提出的生物燃料工艺的主要优点是其原料灵活性，输出灵活性/控制，以及非常有限的氢气需求。生物精炼厂结构优化和有效利用副产品（甘油）的多种策略的研究将促进替代燃料行业的知识，创造更有效的机制来开发副产品（营养品，动物饲料等）。碳氢化合物生物燃料的前景与所有现有的基础设施完全兼容，再加上藻类作为生物燃料原料的充分实现的潜力，通过减少运输部门，提供了巨大的经济和环境影响？中国对化石燃料的依赖。创新和变革性的使能技术将允许在经济上可行的过程中将藻油转化为高价值的运输燃料，通过开发高效，高产的替代能源，将为国家带来重大的环境和经济效益。化学，机械和生物/农业工程师，藻类学家，分子和合成生物学家以及微生物学家之间的跨学科研究为本科生，研究生和博士后学者提供了独特的培训机会，以弥合学科，成为新一代的科学家和工程师，为子孙后代开发可再生能源。

AbstractPI Name: William RobertsInstitution: North Carolina State UniversityProposal Number: 0937721EFRI: EFRI HyBi: Algal Oils to 'Drop-in' Replacements forPetroleum-derived Transportation FuelsThis award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)NC State?s EFRI HyBi will develop the technical feasibility and demonstrate scalability of a unique, multi-step catalytic process to convert a wide range of fats/oils/lipids into replacement transportation fuels that are chemically and physically similar to their petroleum counterparts, thus dramatically reducing infrastructure complications. Algal oils are an ideal feedstock for biofuels production, offering very high production density and the ability to use marginal water (municipal waste, brackish water, etc) and reuse CO2 emitted from coal-fired power plants. However, there are a number of technical challenges associated with efficiently exploiting algae?s inherent advantages as a feedstock. Using a tightly coupled synergistic approach employing both engineering and biology faculty, the team will: a) use a synthetic biology approach to genetically alter a marine microalgae species (Dunaliella) to produce the most desirable feed stocks and optimize the production for conversion to transportation fuels, b) develop innovative and transformative approaches to extracting these lipids and fatty acids from the algae, c) optimize the decarboxylation catalyst, and d) optimize the entire biorefinery process including maximizing thermal efficiency and utilization of co-products and by-products. Intellectual Merit New technologies to transform non-food, renewable feedstock into high quality hydrocarbon biofuels for the transportation sector will broaden scientific discovery and create the framework, synergy and momentum for biologists and engineers to further explore potential alternative fuels. Genetic enhancement and environmental controls will be used to maximize the production of the most beneficial lipids, including synthetic biology approaches to enhance fatty acid synthesis. Exploration of innovative and very efficient means for lipid extraction, including transformative continuous extraction of produced fatty acids, will transform the scientific development of algae as a biofuels feedstock. Key advantages of our proposed biofuels process are its feedstock flexibility, output flexibility/control, and very limited hydrogen requirement. Biorefinery architecture optimization and investigation of multiple strategies to use byproducts (glycerol) efficiently will advance knowledge in the alternative fuels industry, creating more efficient mechanisms to exploit co-products (nutraceuticals, animal feed, etc). Broader Impacts The prospect of hydrocarbon biofuels that are fully compatible with all existing infrastructure, coupled with the fully realized potential of algae as a biofuels feedstock, offers tremendous economic and environmental impact by reducing the transportation sector?s reliance on fossil fuels. Innovative and transformative enabling technologies that will permit the conversion of algal oils into high-value transportation fuels in an economically viable process will bring significant environmental and economic benefits to the nation through the development of an efficient, high-yield alternative energy source. This interdisciplinary research between chemical, mechanical, and bio/agricultural engineers, phycologists, molecular and synthetic biologists, and microbiologists provides unique training opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral scholars to bridge disciplines and become the new generation of scientists and engineers to develop renewable energy for future generations.