I-Corps: Bioprocess producing high-value caproic and caprylic bio-oil from fermentation and organic waste streams

这个I-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是从低价值原料中商业化高价值生物油，特别是乳制品加工和其他农业废物流。被称为羧酸盐平台的使能发酵生物过程产生主要由己酸盐（C6）和辛酸盐（C8）组成的生物油，它们是中链羧酸盐（MCC）。使用含乙醇的原料，羧酸盐平台提供可持续的MCC产品，其市场价值是原料的五倍。利用乳制品加工废物流有望通过废物治理将原料收购成本转化为可观的收入。此外，MCC目前从棕榈油中提取，由于大规模砍伐森林和温室气体排放，该行业正在引起重大的生态问题。目前，MCCs的原始形式可直接用作动物饲料补充剂，但一旦精制，也可用于制造洗涤剂、护理产品、塑料、涂料和药物等许多应用。I-Corps项目将探索发酵生物工艺的商业化，该工艺生产主要由己酸盐（C6）和辛酸盐（C8）组成的生物油。这种生物工艺被称为羧酸盐平台，已证明可以长期稳定地生产生物油，并已被证明对系统干扰具有抵抗力，并且与各种原料相容。使用从生物乙醇工业获得的含乙醇的原料，已经实现了与从厌氧消化产生甲烷的速率具有竞争力的速率。羧酸盐平台采用了来自厌氧消化的知识，厌氧消化是一种广泛使用的可扩展的生物过程，使用开放式培养从有机废物中产生甲烷气体。由羧酸盐平台生产的生物油的每碳价值比甲烷高30倍，使该平台成为有机废物治理厌氧消化的有吸引力的替代方案。特别有希望的是将乳制品加工废物转化为这种有价值的生物油的可能性。该项目的一个关键目标是确定制造合作伙伴，以优化提取系统，以浓缩生物油。目前，这部分过程是资本成本的关键驱动因素。虽然目前的平台在经济上具有竞争力，但资本密集度较低的提取系统将带来更大的盈利能力。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the commercialization of high value bio-oil from low value feedstocks, especially dairy process and other agricultural waste streams. The enabling fermentation bioprocess, called the carboxylate platform, produces a bio-oil consisting primarily of caproate (C6) and caprylate (C8), which are medium chain carboxylates (MCCs). Using ethanol containing feedstocks, the carboxylate platform delivers a sustainable MCC product with five times the market value of the feedstock. Use of a dairy process waste stream holds the promise of converting a feedstock acquisition cost to a substantial revenue through waste remediation. In addition, MCCs are currently extracted from palm oil, an industry which is raising significant ecological concerns due to large scale deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions. In their raw form, MCCs currently have direct use as an animal feed supplement, but once refined, can also be used in the manufacture of detergents, care products, plastics, coatings, and pharmaceuticals, among many other applications.This I-Corps project will explore the commercialization of a fermentation bioprocess which produces a bio-oil consisting primarily of caproate (C6) and caprylate (C8). This bioprocess, called the carboxylate platform, has demonstrated long-term stable production of bio-oil, has proven resistant to system disturbances, and is compatible with a variety of feedstocks. Using an ethanol-containing feedstock obtained from the bio-ethanol industry, rates has been achieved that are competitive with those of methane production from anaerobic digestion. The carboxylate platform adapts knowledge from anaerobic digestion, a widely used and scalable bioprocess using an open culture to generate methane gas from organic waste. The bio-oil produced by the carboxylate platform has a 30 times higher value per carbon than methane, making this platform an attractive alternative to anaerobic digestion for organic waste remediation. Especially promising is the possibility of converting dairy process waste to this valuable bio-oil. A key goal of this project is to identify manufacturing partners to optimize the extraction system to concentrate the bio-oil. Currently, this portion of the process is a critical driver of the capital cost. While the current platform is economically competitive, a less capital-intensive extraction system will lead to far greater profitability.