This project addresses the bioproduction of succinic acid, a top-added value chemical, through the fermentation of crude glycerol, which is the main byproduct of biodiesel production. Currently, succinic acid is predominantly manufactured from petrochemicals or by the fermentation of glucose/sugars. The bioconversion of crude glycerol will not only valourise this fully renewable side-stream which is essentially a biorefinery waste, hence significantly improving the biorefinery economy, but can also provide a sustainable production route with reduced carbon footprint and a favourable economic potential. Hence, the aim of this project is to holistically assess the feasibility of the route from the crude glycerol to the final succinic acid product. A combination of experimental methodologies at a range of scales, from the bench- to the pilot-scale, computational tools, including economic models and process simulators, and market analysis will be employed in order to: (i) prove the feasibility of the downstream process, (ii) benchmark the final succinic acid product against the chemical market standards, (iii) successfully optimise the scale up of the fermentation process to 750 litre bioreactors (iv) identify and engage commercial end users. These objectives should constitute a significant step in reducing the risk of the proposed bioprocess in order to attract industrial investments, hence moving closer towards its industrial uptake and application.

Technical Abstract:
This project is concerned with the bioproduction of Succinic Acid, a top added-value chemical from crude biorefinery glycerol, through batch fermentation, using an appropriately adapted strain of Actinobacillus Succinogenes. It involves a creative synergy between the academic process developers, industrial process implementation specialists as well as industrial process adopters. The aim of the project is to quantitatively assess the feasibility of this process in terms of the quality of the final product, compared to the market standards and of the efficiency of the fermentation at the pilot scale. In parallel market analysis will seek to engage end-users to the next stage of industrial research. A combination of experimental methods, covering a range of different scales from the bench- to the pilot scale, and computational tools will be employed for this purpose. In particular, the project aims to: experimentally verify the downstream process for the production of the final product, benchmark the final succinic acid against market standards, prove the feasibility of the fermentation scale-up in 750 L bioreactors, and computationally assess the economic and environmental feasibility of the overall process.

There is a number of innovative aspects involved, which have been filed in recent patent applications, including (i) the generation of an appropriately adapted strain with improved ability to convert glycerol to succinic acid (ii) an optimised fermentation methodology for SA production (iii) the development of validated predictive computational models of the bioprocess and (iv) the construction of integrated biorefinery simulators coupled with economic models of the process. There is also extensive know-how that is associated with the design and optimisation of the process.

Potential Impact:
As described in proposal submitted to TSB