Review
Engineering, Environmental
Monika Sharma, El-Sayed Salama, Nandini Thakur, Hisham Alghamdi, Byong-Hun Jeon, Xiangkai Li
Summary: Availability of biomass makes biofuel from bioresources more feasible. Recently, algal biomass and lignocellulosic biomass have been widely used in bioelectrochemical systems for bioelectricity and biohydrogen production. However, there is a lack of comprehensive reviews on this topic. This review provides an in-depth understanding of biomass-specific bioelectrochemical systems, including biomass selection, pretreatment approaches, dominating microbes, economic feasibility, and pilot-scale up.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Lucca Bonjy Kikuti Mancilio, Guilherme Augusto Ribeiro, Erica Janaina Rodrigues de Almeida, Guilherme Marcelino Viana de Siqueira, Rafael Silva Rocha, Maria-Eugenia Guazzaroni, Adalgisa Rodrigues De Andrade, Valeria Reginatto
Summary: In this study, a synthetic nonfermentable fraction of sugarcane biomass hydrolysates was used in MFC operation, with acetate spiked with p-coumaric acid as substrates. The addition of 0.1 mM p-coumaric acid resulted in a decrease in both the potential and power density of the MFC. p-Coumaric acid was efficiently metabolized (79%) by a robust bacterial community mainly composed of Pseudomonas spp. and Pseudochrobactrum spp.
INDUSTRIAL CROPS AND PRODUCTS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Mostafa E. Elshobary, Hossain M. Zabed, Junhua Yun, Guoyan Zhang, Xianghui Qi
Summary: The usage of microbial fuel cells (MFC) for power generation from renewable biomass sources and the efficient utilization of chemical energy stored in microalgae biomass for the production of biofuels and other bioproducts have attracted significant attention. Incorporating microalgae into MFC can enhance efficiency and provide a cost-effective renewable approach for electricity generation. While microalgae-assisted MFCs (MA-MFCs) show promise in sustainability, further research is needed to optimize performance and achieve large-scale application.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN ENERGY
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Rifeng Wu, Shangwei Zhang, Shanquan Wang
Summary: In this study, a new method for the remediation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) was developed by combining microbial reductive dechlorination (Bio-RD) with subsequent persulfate activation and oxidation process (PAOP). The results showed that the combination of Bio-RD and PAOP significantly improved the removal efficiency of PCBs. Different chlorinated PCBs exhibited different reactivity in the dechlorination and degradation/mineralization processes. The oxidizing species generated during the PAOP process decreased the microbial abundance, but the coexistence of other microorganisms alleviated the inhibitive effect on a specific respiratory bacterium.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Jeremy B. Trombley, Kamaljit K. Sangha, Alan N. Andersen, Suresh N. Thennadil
Summary: We establish a framework to examine the feasibility of using local vegetation for bioenergy power systems in small-scale applications and remote settings. Our findings show that the direct combustion system is the most economical choice and has high techno-economic potential.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
AbubakarMuh'd Sani, Nishit Savla, Soumya Pandit, Abhilasha Singh Mathuriya, Piyush K. Gupta, Namita Khanna, Rishi Pramod Babu, Sachin Kumar
Summary: The emergence of renewable energy technologies provides a significant advantage in converting organic wastes to bioenergy. Lignocellulosic biomass is considered to be a rich source of energy that can be utilized by microbial consortia to generate electricity in a microbial fuel cell.
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES AND ASSESSMENTS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Shentan Liu, Hongpu Xue, Xiaojuan Feng, Sang-Hyun Pyo
Summary: A novel two-dimensional biofilm electrode reactor (2D-BER) was developed to treat dye wastewater. Electrostimulation was found to stimulate microbial growth and enhance dye decolorization. The choice of co-substrate also affected the decolorization efficiency.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Walter Rojas-Villacorta, Segundo Rojas-Flores, Santiago M. Benites, Renny Nazario-Naveda, Cecilia V. Romero, Moises Gallozzo-Cardenas, Daniel Delfin-Narciso, Felix Diaz, Emzon Murga-Torres
Summary: Agricultural waste has negative impacts on the environment and creates economic difficulties for agro-industrial companies and farmers. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the use of lettuce waste as a sustainable substrate for generating bioelectricity in single-chamber microbial fuel cells. The results showed that the peak voltage and current were 0.959 ± 0.026 V and 5.697 ± 0.065 mA on the fourteenth day, with an optimal pH of 7.867 ± 0.147 and electrical conductivity of 118.964 ± 8.888 mS/cm. The maximum power density was calculated to be 378.145 ± 5.417 mW/cm², and the internal resistance was 87.594 ± 6.226 Ω according to Ohm's Law. Furthermore, the presence of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia bacterium (99.59%) in the anodic biofilm was identified on a molecular scale. Finally, three microbial fuel cells connected in series were able to power an LED bulb with a voltage of 2.18 V.
Article
Energy & Fuels
Justin P. Jahnke, Deborah A. Sarkes, Jessica L. Liba, James J. Sumner, Dimitra N. Stratis-Cullum
Summary: Microorganism surface affinity can be controlled by introducing material binding motifs into proteins, enhancing electrical power production in a microbial fuel cell. Strains with higher affinity for gold surfaces generate higher peak voltages and power densities in MFCs, showing a clear correlation between surface affinity and power generation.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Nabea Muneer Mahdi, Ahmed Hassoon Ali
Summary: Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are cost-effective and easy-to-construct engineered systems. A series of experiments were conducted to assess the impact of various factors on MFC performance, including pH, salt bridge type, molar concentration, temperature, and dye concentration. The best parameters for maximum removal and voltage production were found to be 7.5 pH, salt bridge with KCl, 1.5 M molar concentration, 30 degrees C temperature, and 500 mg/L dye concentration. The efficiency of different adsorbents for dye removal varied, with PC, GS, AS, SD, and G showing the highest to lowest removal rates, respectively.
DESALINATION AND WATER TREATMENT
(2022)
Review
Engineering, Environmental
Rifeng Wu, Shanquan Wang
Summary: The integration of bioremediation with organohalide-respiring bacteria (OHRB) and sulfate radicals-based oxidation (Bio-RD-PAO) shows promising results in addressing organohalide pollution, particularly for lowly-halogenated organohalides. This approach offers advantages such as complete attenuation, high reactivity, and non-selectivity to organohalides, making it a potential solution for future remediation applications.
FRONTIERS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Mengni Tao, Zhaoqian Jing, Zhengkai Tao, Hui Luo, Simin Zuo, Yu-You Li
Summary: The addition of corncobs in treating secondary effluent from municipal wastewater treatment plants significantly enhances the denitrification performance and bioelectricity generation in a microbial fuel cell-constructed wetland system. The optimal dosage of corncobs is found to be 70 g/m(2), resulting in the highest nitrate removal and power density. High-throughput sequencing analysis reveals the presence of microorganisms related to organics degradation, and certain functional genera contribute to higher nitrogen removal and bioelectricity generation in the MFC-CW system.
JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Chamath D. Y. Yahampath Arachchige Don, Sandhya Babel
Summary: Synthetic wastewater with 1500 mg L-1 of COD was treated in the anode and cathode chambers for 5, 10, and 20 days each. A 10-day anodic hydraulic retention time resulted in higher power generation and COD removal efficiency. The combination of anode and cathode chambers removed 79% of NH4+-N concentration from the original wastewater within 20 days.
Review
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Mitra Ahanchi, Tahereh Jafary, Anteneh Mesfin Yeneneh, Parveen Fatemeh Rupani, Alireza Shafizadeh, Hossein Shahbeik, Junting Pan, Meisam Tabatabaei, Mortaza Aghbashlo
Summary: This review highlights the opportunity of using abundant waste biomass resources to address the challenges of economic viability and low power productivity in microbial fuel cell (MFC) systems. The potential of utilizing waste biomass as membrane constituents, electrode materials, and feedstock sources is discussed, along with recent advances in power management and optimization techniques. The study suggests that converting waste biomass to biochar or activated carbon can significantly reduce the cost of electrodes, and waste biomass-derived biochar can lower membrane manufacturing costs. The review also proposes optimum power management configurations based on key factors such as input and output voltage. It outlines the challenges and limitations of using waste biomass in MFC systems, providing insights for future research in this field.
JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Chamath D. Y. Yahampath Arachchige Don, Sandhya Babel
Summary: This study compared the power generation of a microbial fuel cell (MFC) using photosynthetic aeration and mechanical aeration. Results showed that photosynthetic aeration increased the maximum power density by 34.5% and reduced the internal resistance of the cell by 13.7%. Additionally, photosynthetic aeration facilitated microalgal biomass production, suggesting its potential for enhanced power generation in MFCs.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN ENERGY
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Tzu-Hsuan Yu, Shih- Tan, Ying-Chen Yi, Chengfeng Xue, Wan-Wen Ting, Jui-Jen Chang, I-Son Ng
Summary: The study demonstrated that codon adaptation index and tRNA adaptation index influence the expression level and folding of recombinant ALAS gene in E. coli. Genomic integration and co-expression of chaperone helped increase 5-ALA production in E. coli. Addition of ferric ion during continuous culture boosted cell growth and 5-ALA production.
BIOCHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Chengfeng Xue, I. -Son Ng
Summary: By optimizing the process with in situ CO2 adaptation and citrate feeding strategies, biorefineries have successfully achieved efficient production of GABA and sequestered the CO2 generated in sodium hydroxide. Supplying GABA to the culture further improved biomass and lipid content.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Xiumei Luo, Tingting Tian, Li Feng, Xingyong Yang, Linxuan Li, Xue Tan, Wenxian Wu, Zhengguo Li, Haim Treves, Francois Serneels, I-Son Ng, Kan Tanaka, Maozhi Ren
Summary: During the arms race between plants and pathogens, PR1 proteins in host plants play a crucial role in disease resistance. This study investigates the anti-oomycete activity of secretory PR1 proteins and elucidates their underlying mechanisms by studying the potato-Phytophthora infestans pathosystem. The results provide novel insights into the molecular function of PR1 in protecting plants against pathogen infection and uncover a potential target for preventing late blight.
JOURNAL OF ADVANCED RESEARCH
(2023)
Review
Microbiology
Sefli Sri Wahyu Effendi, I-Son Ng
Summary: EcN is a notable probiotic used to treat Crohn's disease and irritable bowel syndrome. A comprehensive genomic database is helpful in assessing EcN's role in human health. Recent advancements in synthetic and genetic tools have made it possible to engineer EcN as a living medicine with controllable functions. Further studies are needed to fully explore the potential of EcN in disease treatment.
CRITICAL REVIEWS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Wan-Wen Ting, I-Son Ng
Summary: Chromosome-based engineering is a superior approach for generating a stable and reliable gene chassis. In this study, the effective T7 RNA polymerase (T7RNAP) was incorporated into Escherichia coli W3110, resulting in successful 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) production. By comparing the metabolic differences in four different strains, it was found that strain RH had the highest production and the lowest by-product acetate. Overexpression of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEP) led to high 5-ALA production. The metabolic analysis of strain RH revealed that alpha-ketoglutaric acid dominated the 5-ALA production. Finally, a robust and efficient gene chassis was established for low-carbon assimilation and high-level 5-ALA production.
BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOENGINEERING
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Chengfeng Xue, I-Son Ng
Summary: This research discovered the impact of PLP on bacterial biomass and established a novel enzyme evaluation platform (DEEP) using CRISPRi technology to enhance the biomass and activity of PLP-dependent enzymes. DEEP is not only suitable for high-throughput screening of the best PLP engineering chassis, but also for fine-tuning the quantity and quality of enzymes.
BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOENGINEERING
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Po-Yen Chen, Ying-Chen Yi, Han-Ching Wang, I-Son Ng
Summary: Aquacultural shrimps are economically affected by the fatal and contagious white spot syndrome virus (WSSV), which remains a mystery in terms of its infectious mechanism. In this study, the optimal expression of WSSV355 was achieved in engineered Escherichia coli strains through codon usage optimization, strain selection, and co-expression with pRARE. The production of WSSV355 was further enhanced by scaling up production in the fermenter under optimized oxygen supply conditions.
APPLIED BIOCHEMISTRY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Agricultural Engineering
Tse-Min Lee, Jia-Yi Lin, Tsung-Han Tsai, Ru-Yin Yang, I-Son Ng
Summary: Carbon dioxide is the main greenhouse gas and a critical issue for global warming and climate change. Microalgae, which are inconspicuous microorganisms, account for 40% of carbon fixation in photosynthetic plants and have higher photosynthetic efficiency. They convert carbon into various useful compounds. Genetic engineering and metabolic engineering are used to increase the growth rate and biomass of microalgae to achieve carbon neutrality. CRISPR/Cas9 is an efficient tool to enhance productivity in microalgae by regulating multiple genes simultaneously. This review summarizes the technologies, bioinformatics tools, and systematic engineering approaches for carbon neutrality and circular economy, bringing us closer to a decarbonized society.
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ying-Chen Yi, I-Son Ng
Summary: Researchers are exploring biological methods to reduce carbon dioxide emissions instead of using physical and chemical methods currently. They have successfully produced glycolic acid, a promising component for bioplastics, food, and pharmaceutical industries, using genetically engineered Escherichia coli in a low-carbon manner. By optimizing certain genes, they achieved a high yield of glycolic acid and improved carbon dioxide uptake. This eco-friendly and cost-efficient approach could contribute to chemical production with reduced carbon emissions.
ACS SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY & ENGINEERING
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Jia-Yi Lin, I-Son Ng
Summary: The newly discovered halophilic Cyanobacteria aponinum PCC10605 shows robust growth as a blue alga, compared to other strains such as Chlorella sorokiniana, Chlorella vulgaris, and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. The optimal conditions for PCC10605 cultivation were found to be autotrophic growth in 20 g/L seawater at 39 degrees C. When the nitrogen and phosphorus concentration was at a ratio of 3:1, PCC10605 showed fast growth and higher C-phycocyanin (C-PC) productivity. It achieved a biomass concentration of 1.53 g/L and C-PC production of 0.492 g/L under 25% light intensity and a 12:12 light period. Additionally, PCC10605 demonstrated the potential for negative carbon emissions when cultured in a mixed medium and wastewater with a 1:2 vol ratio, reducing 40.5% of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and simultaneously capturing 1.71 g-CO2.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Priskila Adjani Diankristanti, Sefli Sri Wahyu Effendi, Chuan-Chieh Hsiang, I-Son Ng
Summary: Using whole-cell biocatalysts to produce itaconic acid (IA) from citrate is an alternative approach to overcome the limitations of in vivo IA production. By employing engineered E.coli Lemo21(DE3) with aconitase (Acn) and cis-aconitate decarboxylase (CadA), IA titer of 72.44 g/L was achieved, which increased to 81.6 g/L after cold-treating the biocatalysts. Furthermore, a new seeding strategy in Terrific Broth (TB) maintained the biocatalysts stability for up to 30 days and the highest IA titer of 98.17 g/L was obtained using the L21::7G chassis.
ENZYME AND MICROBIAL TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Chengfeng Xue, I-Son Ng
Summary: For the first time, Pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP) was used as a protein decoy to enhance enzyme expression and activity. By introducing new substrates and altering metabolic pathways, the growth and protein yield of the strain were further improved.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Ying-Chen Yi, Shih- Tan, Ruei-En Hu, Chuan-Chieh Hsiang, Jia-Yi Lin, Sefli Sri Wahyu Effendi, I-Son Ng
Summary: This study explored the temperature effect on plasmid replication in Escherichia coli and developed a thermal switchable and reversible protein expression system based on the observation. It was found that the constitutive J23100 and T7 promoter can be remodeled as a robust temperature-control system for reporter genes and functional proteins.
JOURNAL OF THE TAIWAN INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERS
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yu -Chi Tseng, Chengfeng Xue, I-Son Ng
Summary: The abundance and biodiversity of intestinal bacteria are crucial for the immune system. Two important probiotics, Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN) and Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG), have been found to enhance intestinal immunity in symbiosis with other cells. By optimizing the culture medium and establishing a novel colony quantification method, the advantages of EcN and LGG can be fully utilized. Co-culturing LGG with EcN leads to increased lactate consumption, and the enzyme YkgG from EcN is responsible for this conversion. The co-culture strategy of EcN with LGG in the gastrointestinal tract shows promising results in increasing colony-forming units (CFU) in a short period of time.
PROCESS BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Yen-Ju Lee, Ying-Chen Yi, Yu-Chieh Lin, Chao-Chung Chen, Jia-Horung Hung, Jia-Yi Lin, I-Son Ng
Summary: This study explores the extraction and purification of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) using different chemicals, and experimentally verifies its applications in pathogen elimination and antimicrobial fields. The results demonstrate that 5-ALA has a high killing effect on both cancer cells and pathogenic bacteria in photodynamic therapy, and can improve the growth of microalgae.
BIORESOURCES AND BIOPROCESSING
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Xu Yang, Jieshi Xiao, Jian Huang, Kaixiang Peng
Summary: This study introduces an online convolutional adversarial autoencoder (AAE) model to learn representative industrial process information. By extracting features that reflect diverse information and follow a Gaussian distribution, the model improves the accuracy of fault detection and removes redundant information through a feature selection strategy.
JOURNAL OF THE TAIWAN INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERS
(2024)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Shao-Yang Wu, Meng-Tsun Lai, Chung-Hui Hsu, Kevin C. W. Wu, Yesong Gu
Summary: This study investigated the effectiveness of using Fe-based MOF or MIL-100(Fe) in conjunction with a PEDOT-modified Pt electrode for detecting the synthetic azo dye tartrazine. By modifying the electrode with two different methods, favorable lower reductive potentials, competitive sensitivities, and good repeatability and stability were achieved in all MIL-100(Fe)/PEDOT/Pt electrodes.
JOURNAL OF THE TAIWAN INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERS
(2024)
