SBIR Phase I: Converting Organic Waste to Biopolymer by Synergizing Anaerobic Digestion and Synthetic Biology

Optimizing resource utilization by closing waste loops is a critical strategy for supportingsustainable growth while minimizing environmental pollutions. Overcoming the cost barrier is akey to success in capturing the energy and carbon from untapped organic waste resources.Producing biodegradable plastics from waste biomass offers a promising option because of the highvalue of the products the immense global market and the high carbon use efficiency. The goal ofthis project is to develop an innovative and cost-effective technology that valorizes wet wastestreams through producing biopolymers.The project goal will be achieved by synergizing the unique capability of anaerobic digestion(AD) with the advancements in synthetic biology. The AD process is harnessed to funnel variousorganic carbons in the waste into simple intermediate. The intermediates are then used as buildingblocks to efficiently biosynthesize biopolymers through engineered novel pathways. Integratingboth processes takes the advantages of mixed microbial community in the AD process and a robustmicrobial cell factory developed via synthetic biology leading to production of designer productsfrom waste with high overall yield and productivity.Success in this project will provide an effective technical option for utilizing waste resources.Commercializing this technology will not only result in more affordable biodegradable plastics formeeting the growing market demand created by increasing concerns about plastic pollution andconsumers' preference of eco-sustainable product but also contribute to accelerating thedevelopment of the bio-based industry and creating values and business opportunities by valorizingwaste streams.