"Cell factory" transforms straw into degradable plastic

Yesterday, the reporter learned from the 8th China Industrial Biotechnology Development Summit Forum that the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the only research institute in Tianjin, the Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, used modern biotechnology to create a “cell factory” and created the above miracle. So what has just been said has become possible.

According to Ma Yanhe, director of the Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biology, the so-called "cell factory" refers to the use of metabolic functions of cell life to achieve the processing and production of substances. Simply put, through effective design, biomass materials such as straw, cassava and seaweed are transformed into chemical products such as pentamethylenediamine, succinic acid, adipic acid, methane and ethanol through the action of “cell factory”. , to provide raw materials for the modern chemical industry system. He also said that biodegradable plastic PBS is a successful representative of researchers using the "cell factory." Using straw as a raw material, Escherichia coli, which produces succinic acid efficiently, is produced, and succinic acid can be produced to produce PBS. This method makes the cost of producing succinic acid significantly lower than the existing oil route, and the carbon dioxide emissions are reduced by 94%, making it possible to promote the large-scale application of PBS bioplastics in the future. At the same time, the researchers also realized the bio-manufacturing technology of D-lactic acid, a key monomer of biodegradable plastic PLA, and completed the construction of a 3000-ton/year production demonstration line this year. Compared with foreign technology routes, its production costs have dropped by 50%.

The technical platform of Tianjin Industrial Biotechnology Institute has been radiated to more than 50 scientific research units and enterprises in Tianjin and Bohai Rim. In addition, the institute has also jointly undertaken the “Tianjin (Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei) bio-based materials products in conjunction with the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei company. Application demonstration" project. It is estimated that after three years of construction, it will realize the production of 9000 tons of bio-based plastic substitute products in Tianjin Airport Economic Zone every year, and promote the promotion and application of bio-based materials in Tianjin and even the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Therefore, it is true that weeds, straw, starch and even carbon dioxide can be turned into food, medicine, fabrics and energy.