Perspective

Simpler Is Better: High-Yield and Potential Low-Cost Biofuels Production through Cell-Free Synthetic Pathway Biotransformation (SyPaB)

Biological Systems Engineering Department, Virginia Tech, 210-A Seitz Hall, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS), Virginia Tech, Virginia 24061, United States
DOE Bioenergy Science Center, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831, United States
Gate Fuels Inc., 3107 Alice Dr., Blacksburg, Virginia 24060, United States
ACS Catal., 2011, 1 (9), pp 998–1009
DOI: 10.1021/cs200218f
Publication Date (Web): July 19, 2011
Copyright © 2011 American Chemical Society
E-mail: ypzhang@vt.edu. Phone: (540) 231-7414. Fax: (540) 231-3199.

Abstract

Abstract Image

The production of biofuels from renewable sugars isolated from plants or produced through artificial photosynthesis would provide a sustainable transportation fuel alternative for decreasing reliance on crude oil, mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, creating new manufacturing jobs, and enhancing national energy security. Since sugar costs usually account for at least 50% of biofuels’ selling prices, it is vital to produce desired biofuels with high product yields and at low production costs. Here I suggest high-product yield and potentially low-cost biofuels production through cell-free synthetic enzymatic pathway biotransformation (SyPaB) by in vitro assembly of stable enzymes and (biomimetic) coenzymes. SyPaB can achieve high product yields or high energy efficiencies that living entities cannot achieve. Great potentials of SyPaB, from chiral compounds, biodegradable sugar batteries, sulfur-free jet fuel, hydrogen, sugar hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, high-density electricity storage, to synthetic starch, are motivation to solve the remaining obstacles by using available technologies, such as protein engineering, enzyme immobilization, unit operations, and technology integration. The biotransformation through in vitro assembly of numerous enhanced-performance and stable enzymes in one bioreactor that can last a very long reaction time (e.g., several months or even years) would be an out-of-the-box solution for high-yield and low-cost biofuels production.

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Received 27 April 2011
Published online 19 July 2011
Published in print 2 September 2011
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