The objective of the project is the recycling of CO2 exhaust gases from industrial parks into valuable, biodegradable and stable bioplastics. For this purpose, a novel combination of electrochemical conversion and biotechnology is chosen. In the first step, CO2 is converted into formic acid in an electrolyzer, and then converted into bioplastics in a second step by means of bacteria. Target products are polyhydroxy butyric acid (PHB) and crotonic acid. The project consortium covers the entire value chain and brings together high-ranking academic institutes such as the Max Planck Institutes in Potsdam and the University Stuttgart with proven industry experts. At the end of the project, an integrated process with an electrolyzer and bioreactor on a laboratory scale is expected to be operational, and thus being able to produce the two target molecules directly from CO2. The project serves as a preparation for further industrialization of the process, which is already being addressed in the project. The work is accompanied by a comprehensive life-cycle-analysis (LCA) and a technical-economic evaluation (TEA) of the process.

Pressemitteilung in Deutsch

Press Release in English

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At the conference all worldwide leading scientists and companies were invited to discuss the Global CO2 Challenges and to pesent their solutions.

The project aims for the听De novo听metabolic conversion of electrochemically produced formate into hydrocarbon fuels.

Here is an overview of the concept:For more details please refer to the project .