Year: 2019
Type: review
Abstract: The steadily increasing demand on transportation fuels calls for renewable fuel replacements. This has attracted a growing amount of research to develop advanced biofuels that have similar physical, chemical, and combustion properties with petroleum-derived fossil fuels. Early generations of biofuels, such as ethanol, butanol, and straight-chain fatty acid-derived esters or hydrocarbons suffer from various undesirable properties and can only be blended in limited amounts. Recent research has shifted to the production of branched-chain biofuels that, compared to straight-chain fuels, have higher octane values, better cold flow, and lower cloud points, making them more suitable for existing engines, particularly for diesel and jet engines. This review focuses on several types of branched-chain biofuels and their immediate precursors, including branched short-chain (C4-C8) and long-chain (C15-C19)-alcohols, alkanes, and esters. We discuss their biosynthesis, regulation, and recent efforts in their overproduction by engineered microbes.
Source: Biotechnology for Biofuels
Institution: Washington University in St. Louis
Language: English
Subfield: Molecular Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,680
Awards: G1505768597, SYSTEMS ENGINEERING OF RHODOCOCCUS OPACUS TO ENABLE PRODUCTION OF DROP-IN FUELS FROM LIGNOCELLULOSE, G2432717033, SYSTEMS ENGINEERING OF RHODOCOCCUS OPACUS TO ENABLE PRODUCTION OF DROP-IN FUELS FROM LIGNOCELLULOSE, CAREER: Synthetic Regulatory Systems for Dynamic Metabolic Pathways
OpenAlex ID: W2940207226