Filippou Konstantina, Bouzani Evaggelia, Kora Elianta, Ntaikou Ioanna, Papadopoulou Konstantina, Lyberatos Gerasimos
School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Iroon Potechneiou 9, Zografou, 15780 Athens, Greece.
Institute of Chemical Engineering Sciences (ICE-HT), Stadiou Str., Platani, 26504 Patras, Greece.
Polymers (Basel). 2025 Jul 26;17(15):2042. doi: 10.3390/polym17152042.
The growing environmental concerns associated with petroleum-based plastics require the development of sustainable, biodegradable alternatives. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), a family of biodegradable bioplastics, offer a promising potential as eco-friendly substitutes due to their renewable origin and favorable degradation properties. This research investigates the use of synthetic condensate, mimicking the liquid fraction from drying and shredding of household food waste, as a viable substrate for PHA production using mixed microbial cultures. Two draw-fill reactors (DFRs) were operated under different feed organic concentrations (2.0 ± 0.5 and 3.8 ± 0.6 g COD/L), maintaining a consistent carbon-to-nitrogen ratio to selectively enrich microorganisms capable of accumulating PHAs through alternating nutrient availability and deficiency. Both reactors achieved efficient organic pollutant removal (>95% soluble COD removal), stable biomass growth, and optimal pH levels. Notably, the reactor with the higher organic load (DFR-2) demonstrated a modest increase in PHA accumulation (19.05 ± 7.18%) compared to the lower-loaded reactor (DFR-1; 15.19 ± 6.00%), alongside significantly enhanced biomass productivity. Polymer characterization revealed the formation of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV), influenced by the substrate composition. Microbial community analysis showed an adaptive shift towards Proteobacteria dominance, signifying successful enrichment of effective PHA producers.
与石油基塑料相关的环境问题日益受到关注，这就需要开发可持续的、可生物降解的替代品。聚羟基脂肪酸酯（PHA）是一类可生物降解的生物塑料，由于其可再生来源和良好的降解性能，作为环保替代品具有广阔的潜力。本研究调查了使用模拟家庭食物垃圾干燥和粉碎后的液体部分的合成冷凝物，作为使用混合微生物培养物生产PHA的可行底物。两个连续流全混式反应器（DFR）在不同的进料有机浓度（2.0±0.5和3.8±0.6 g COD/L）下运行，保持一致的碳氮比，通过交替提供和缺乏营养物质来选择性富集能够积累PHA的微生物。两个反应器均实现了高效的有机污染物去除（可溶性COD去除率>95%）、稳定的生物量增长和最佳的pH水平。值得注意的是，与低负荷反应器（DFR-1；15.19±6.00%）相比，高有机负荷的反应器（DFR-2）的PHA积累略有增加（19.05±7.18%），同时生物量生产力显著提高。聚合物表征显示形成了聚（3-羟基丁酸酯-co-3-羟基戊酸酯）（PHBV），这受到底物组成的影响。微生物群落分析表明向变形菌门优势的适应性转变，表明有效PHA生产者的成功富集。
