Production Of Various Chemicals Research Articles

Synthesis of Hydroxylamine via Ketone-Mediated Nitrate Electroreduction.

Hydroxylamine (HA, NH2OH) is a critical feedstock in the production of various chemicals and materials, and its efficient and sustainable synthesis is of great importance. Electroreduction of nitrate on Cu-based catalysts has emerged as a promising approach for green ammonia (NH3) production, but the electrosynthesis of HA remains challenging due to overreduction of HA to NH3. Herein, we report the first work on ketone-mediated HA synthesis using nitrate in water. A metal-organic-framework-derived Cu catalyst was developed to catalyze the reaction. Cyclopentanone (CP) was used to capture HA in situ to form CP oxime (CP-O) with C═N bonds, which is prone to hydrolysis. HA could be released easily after electrolysis, and CP was regenerated. It was demonstrated that CP-O could be formed with an excellent Faradaic efficiency of 47.8%, a corresponding formation rate of 34.9 mg h-1 cm-2, and a remarkable carbon selectivity of >99.9%. The hydrolysis of CP-O to release HA and CP regeneration was also optimized, resulting in 96.1 mmol L-1 of HA stabilized in the solution, which was significantly higher than direct nitrate reduction. Detailed in situ characterizations, control experiments, and theoretical calculations revealed the catalyst surface reconstruction and reaction mechanism, which showed that the coexistence of Cu0 and Cu+ facilitated the protonation and reduction of *NO2 and *NH2OH desorption, leading to the enhancement for HA production.

Metabolic engineering in lignocellulose biorefining for high-value chemicals: recent advances, challenges, and outlook for enabling a bioeconomy

Lignocellulose biomass presents a promising and renewable alternative to fossil fuels. Numerous engineered microorganisms have been developed to efficiently utilize this biomass and convert it into valuable platform chemicals. This article provides an overview of the extensive metabolic engineering strategies employed to create robust microbial cell factories for lignocellulose biorefinery. The focus lies on the production of various chemicals including succinic acid, lactic acid, 3-hydroxypropinic acid, xylitol, biohydrocarbons, itaconic acid, 2-phenylethanol, 1,2,4-butanetriol, and 2,3-butanediol from lignocellulose hydrolysate, especially hemicellulose. Additionally, the article briefly discusses the techno-economic analysis, challenges, and future prospects for achieving more sustainable production of these chemicals.

Advancing chronic toxicity risk assessment in freshwater ecology by molecular characterization-based machine learning

The continuously increased production of various chemicals and their release into environments have raised potential negative effects on ecological health. However, traditional labor-intensive assessment methods cannot effectively and rapidly evaluate these hazards, especially for chronic risk. In this study, machine learning (ML) was employed to construct quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) models, enabling the prediction of chronic toxicity to aquatic organisms by leveraging the molecular characteristics of pollutants, namely, the molecular descriptors, fingerprints, and graphs. The limited dataset size hindered the notable advantages of the graph attention network (GAT) model for the molecular graphs. Considering computational efficiency and performance (R2 = 0.78; RMSE = 0.77), XGBoost (XGB) was used for reliable QSAR-ML models predicting chronic toxicity using small- or medium-sized tabular data and the molecular descriptors. Further kernel density estimation analysis confirmed the high accuracy of the model for pollutant concentrations ranging from 10−3 to 102 mg/L, effectively aligning with most environmental scenarios. Model interpretation showed SlogP and exposure duration as the primary influential factors. SlogP, representing the distribution coefficient of a molecule between lipophilic and hydrophilic environments, had a negative effect on the toxicity outcomes. Additionally, the exposure duration played a crucial role in determining the chronic toxicity. Finally, the chronic toxicity data of bisphenol A validated the robustness and reliability of the model established in this research. Our study provided a robust and feasible methodology for chronic ecological risk evaluation of various types of pollutants and could facilitate and increase the use of ML applications in environmental fields.

A Comprehensive Review on Biochar

Biochar from the pyrolysis of organic biomass is a highly porous carbon with many useful applications. While providing practical options for disposal and disease control, it also contributes to carbon sequestration by trapping carbon in plant biomass. The composition and structure of biochar depends on factors such as temperature, heating rate and production time. It also leads to bio-oil and biogas, which can be used for biochar production, electricity generation and the production of various chemicals. Incorporating biochar into the soil improves pH, electrical conductivity, water holding capacity, cation exchange capacity and microbial activity.It reduces nutrient leakage and all necessary fertilizers reduce environmental pollution. Biochar also plays an important role in crop improvement. Besides improving the soil, biochar also has the advantage of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, reducing pesticide use and being used in the construction, cosmetics and treatment, wastewater and food industries. India is rich in biomass resources and has great potential for biochar production. This study explores various production technologies, their effects on biochar energy and the benefits of using biochar.

Selective and scalable oxygenation of heteroatoms using the elements of nature: air, water, and light.

Sustainable oxidation protocols aim to provide an environmentally friendly and cost-effective method for the production of various chemicals and materials. The development of such protocols can lead to reduced energy consumption, fewer harmful byproducts, and increased efficiency in industrial processes. As such, this field of research is of great importance and interest to both academia and industry. This work showcases a sustainable and catalyst-free oxidation method for heteroatoms (e.g., S, P, and Se) using only air, water and light. An additional reaction pathway is proposed in which the incorporated oxygen on the heteroatoms originates from water. Furthermore, the addition of certain additives enhances productivity by affecting kinetics. The industrial potential is demonstrated by conveniently transferring the batch protocol to continuous flow using the HANU flow reactor, indicating scalability and improving safety.

Simultaneous posthydrolysis and liquid–liquid extraction: a SIMPLLE process to detoxify eucalyptus prehydrolysis liquor

AbstractThe prehydrolysis liquor from the prehydrolysis Kraft process is rich in sugars and could thus serve as a sustainable feedstock for the production of various chemicals. However, its industrial utilization is impeded by the presence of fermentation inhibitors and extensive lignin precipitation, the latter receiving only little attention in the literature.In order to provide a feedstock suitable for biotechnological or chemical conversion, the prehydrolysis liquor from eucalyptus wood must be detoxified whilst preventing the precipitation of lignin. To increase the yield of monomeric sugars, acid posthydrolysis should be investigated.Various solvents and solvent mixtures were screened for the high temperature liquid–liquid extraction of isothermally separated prehydrolysis liquor. Their capability to prevent lignin precipitation and to extract fermentation inhibitors was assessed using mass balances and size-exclusion chromatography. Based on the solvent screening, a process for simultaneous posthydrolysis and liquid–liquid extraction of eucalyptus prehydrolysis liquor was proposed and investigated using statistic experimental design.Liquid–liquid extraction using aliphatic alcohols effectively prevents lignin precipitation, and the addition of 25% (w/w) tri-n-octylamine was found to increase the overall inhibitor extraction efficiency. The conditions for the simultaneous posthydrolysis were investigated using a Box-Behnken experimental design, allowing for a maximum monomeric sugar yield of 83.0% at a sugar purity of 91.6%.The simultaneous posthydrolysis and liquid-liquid extraction (SIMPLLE) process thus avoids industrial-level problems associated with lignin precipitation. It provides a carbohydrate-rich stream with low levels of fermentation inhibitors, enabling further conversion to value added products.

Ion-Conducting Ceramic Membrane Reactors for the Conversion of Chemicals.

Ion-conducting ceramic membranes, such as mixed oxygen ionic and electronic conducting (MIEC) membranes and mixed proton-electron conducting (MPEC) membranes, have the potential for absolute selectivity for specific gases at high temperatures. By utilizing these membranes in membrane reactors, it is possible to combine reaction and separation processes into one unit, leading to a reduction in by-product formation and enabling the use of thermal effects to achieve efficient and sustainable chemical production. As a result, membrane reactors show great promise in the production of various chemicals and fuels. This paper provides an overview of recent developments in dense ceramic catalytic membrane reactors and their potential for chemical production. This review covers different types of membrane reactors and their principles, advantages, disadvantages, and key issues. The paper also discusses the configuration and design of catalytic membrane reactors. Finally, the paper offers insights into the challenges of scaling up membrane reactors from experimental stages to practical applications.

Light-driven biosynthesis of volatile, unstable and photosensitive chemicals from CO2

Directing CO2 conversion using photoautotrophic microbes offers a promising route to coupling carbon mitigation with petrochemical replacement. However, solar-based biomanufacturing is hampered by inefficient genetic manipulation, narrow product scope and light-induced decomposition. Here we report a spatiotemporally separated modular strategy to realize CO2-to-molecule conversion by sequentially linking carbon sequestration and cellular catalysis via stable mediator compounds. The carbon fixation rate of the sequestration module was improved by approximately 50% through metabolic network remodelling, while biphasic catalysis, multiple gene editing and high-throughput workflow were applied to the catalysis modules to produce olefins, cinnamaldehyde and curcumin. The catalytic efficiency was notably enhanced by up to 114-fold compared with the monoculture. This modular design approach enables the rapid development of sustainable biorefineries in a plug-and-play fashion, as evidenced by the production of various chemicals at the gram-per-litre level through scaled-up fermentation. This carbon-negative flexible platform notably widens the applicability of light-driven biosynthesis and may boost the bioindustry of CO2 reduction in a sustainable future. Carbon-negative biomanufacturing is typically hampered by narrow product scope and light-induced decomposition. Now, an integrated photosynthetic carbon sequestration and cellular catalysis strategy for CO2 valorization are reported. Multiple gene editing and a high-throughput workflow have facilitated its application to the biocatalytic production of styrene, intracellular unstable aldehydes and photosensitive molecules from CO2.

Assessment of New and Genome-Reduced Pseudomonas Strains Regarding Their Robustness as Chassis in Biotechnological Applications.

Organic olvent-tolerant strains of the Gram-negative bacterial genus Pseudomonas are discussed as potential biocatalysts for the biotechnological production of various chemicals. However, many current strains with the highest tolerance are belonging to the species P. putida and are classified as biosafety level 2 strains, which makes them uninteresting for the biotechnological industry. Therefore, it is necessary to identify other biosafety level 1 Pseudomonas strains with high tolerance towards solvents and other forms of stress, which are suitable for establishing production platforms of biotechnological processes. In order to exploit the native potential of Pseudomonas as a microbial cell factory, the biosafety level 1 strain P. taiwanensis VLB120 and its genome-reduced chassis (GRC) variants as well as the plastic-degrading strain P. capeferrum TDA1 were assessed regarding their tolerance towards different n-alkanols (1-butanol, 1-hexanol, 1-octanol, 1-decanol). Toxicity of the solvents was investigated by their effects on bacterial growth rates given as the EC50 concentrations. Hereby, both toxicities as well as the adaptive responses of P. taiwanensis GRC3 and P. capeferrum TDA1 showed EC50 values up to two-fold higher than those previously detected for P. putida DOT-T1E (biosafety level 2), one of the best described solvent-tolerant bacteria. Furthermore, in two-phase solvent systems, all the evaluated strains were adapted to 1-decanol as a second organic phase (i.e., OD560 was at least 0.5 after 24 h of incubation with 1% (v/v) 1-decanol), which shows the potential use of these strains as platforms for the bio-production of a wide variety of chemicals at industrial level.

Pentose-Fermenting Yeasts in Nature: Ecology, Biodiversity and Applications

The world’s energy sector has undergone drastic changes in the last decades due to the climate change and the turn to renewable energy sources. Biomass is the largest renewable source of carbohydrates on the Earth and is an important substrate for biofuel production. Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeasts are the main producer of first-generation ethanol from corn and sugarcane. However, these yeasts lack the ability to utilize the important components of lignocelluloses such as pentoses D-xylose and L-arabinose. Pentose-fermenting yeasts could become an alternative to S. cerevisiae in ethanol production from lignocelluloses. This review focuses on the ecology, geographical distribution, taxonomy, and potential applications of naturally-occurring pentose-fermenting yeasts. Pentose-fermenting yeasts have been frequently found in the lignocelluloseassociated substrates. Decaying and rotten wood and the gut of wood-boring insects are especially important natural reservoirs of this group of yeasts. Simple sugars xylose and L-arabinose would be present in such habitats as suitable nutrients for pentose-assimilating yeasts. The other natural habitats reported for pentose-fermenting yeasts are soil, plants, and herbivore faeces. Pentose-fermenting yeasts are found in many geographical regions and have been isolated on almost each continent. Dozens of novel pentose-fermenting yeast species have been discovered in the last decade. The previously poorly explored regions, including Brazil, China, and several Asian countries were especially oft en reported as sites of isolation of such yeasts. Most xylose-fermenting yeasts belong to genera Scheffersomyces, Candida, Spathaspora, Sugiyamaella, and Pachysolen, while the most efficient ethanol producers are represented by species Scheffersomyces stipitis and Spathaspora passalidarum. The vast majority of research on the biotechnological application of pentose-fermenting yeasts focuses on their role in the production of bioethanol from lignocellulose. This group of yeasts could be either directly involved in the fermentation stage of ethanol production or serve as a source of genetic material for the genetic manipulation of other industrial yeast strains. Pentose-fermenting yeasts could also be involved in the production of various chemicals from lignocellulosic substrates, mainly polyols, xylitol, and arabitol. Thus, the search for novel pentose-fermenting yeasts that could become new efficient ethanol producers or donors of new genetic material is still ongoing. The previously unexplored or poorly studied geographical regions and natural habitats can hide many novel yeasts with huge biotechnological potential.

Microalgae-derived single-atom oxygen reduction catalysts for zinc-air batteries

The need to fight against global warming has motivated the development of new technologies for green production of various chemicals and materials. Microalgae can convert CO2 into valuable biofuels, thus playing important roles in carbon neutrality. However, appropriately utilization of microalgae biomass remains an important issue to address. Here we demonstrate that the microalgae biomass with abundant membrane-bound biomolecules and singly isolated metal atoms can be upgraded into single-atom site catalysts (SACs) with high oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity. Through hydrothermal and pyrolysis treatment of microalgae, Fe–N4 structured SACs (malg-SACs) are obtained, as confirmed by near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS), X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES), and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS). Under optimal conditions, the malg-SAC exhibits a remarkable ORR activity (E1/2 = 0.875 V vs. RHE), outstanding long-term stability, and good resistance to CO and CH3OH poisoning. When assembled in a primary zinc-air battery, the full device reaches a maximum power density of 220.7 mW cm−2 with negligible voltage decay over the 6 h test, far outperforming the commercial Pt/C (112.1 mW cm−2). Our work reports a sustainable pathway to convert CO2-capture biomass into high-performance SACs, simultaneously addressing environmental and energy issues.

Development and Application of Transcription Terminators for Polyhydroxylkanoates Production in Halophilic Halomonas bluephagenesis TD01.

Halomonas bluephagenesis TD01 is one of the ideal chassis for low-cost industrial production based on “Next Generation Industrial Biotechnology,” yet the limited genetically regulatory parts such as transcriptional terminators, which are crucial for tuned regulations on gene expression, have hampered the engineering and applications of the strain. In this study, a series of intrinsic Rho-independent terminators were developed by either genome mining or rational design, and seven of them proved to exhibit higher efficiencies than the canonical strong T7 terminator, among which three terminators displayed high efficiencies over 90%. A preliminary modeling on the sequence-efficiency relationship of the terminators suggested that the poly U sequence regularity, the length and GC content of the stem, and the number and the size of hairpin loops remarkably affected the termination efficiency (TE). The rational and de novo designs of novel synthetic terminators based on the sequence-efficiency relationship and the “main contributor” engineering strategy proved to be effective, and fine-tuned polyhydroxylkanoates production was also achieved by the regulation of these native or synthetic terminators with different efficiencies. Furthermore, a perfectly positive correlation between the promoter activity and the TE was revealed in our study. The study enriches our knowledge of transcriptional termination via its sequence–strength relationship and enables the precise regulation of gene expression and PHA synthesis by intrinsic terminators, contributing to the extensive applications of H. bluephagenesis TD01 in the low-cost production of various chemicals.

Integration of anaerobic digestion and chain elongation technologies for biogas and carboxylic acids production from cheese whey

Cheese whey (CW) used for the production of various chemicals in different studies, but no studies designed to produce multiple energy in the form of short-chain/medium-chain carboxylic acids, and biohydrogen (H2) using bio-augmentation strategy by integrating the anaerobic digestion and chain elongation technologies. To achieve this, CW and mixed anaerobic bacteria were kept in an anaerobic chamber for 14 d to produce short chain carboxylic acids (SCCA, acetic (C2), propionic (C3), and butyric (C4) acids), and these SCCA were again converted to medium chain carboxylic acids (MCCA) like hexanoic (C6), heptanoic (C7), and octanoic (C8) acids using enriched bacterial culture, which was bio-augmented with Clostridium kluyveri. SCCA, MCCA, and biogas were analyzed with HPLC and GC. Higher amounts of SCCA, i.e., C2 (10 g/L), C4 (8.1 g/L), and MCCA, i.e., C6 (4.8 g/L), were produced. Biohydrogen (H2) existed in the highest proposition (69%) in biogas composition. Results meant that bio-augmentation strategy could be used for the conversion of CW into valuable carboxylic acids and H2, which have high potential in today's market.

CRISPR-mediated protein-tagging signal amplification systems for efficient transcriptional activation and repression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae is an important model eukaryotic microorganism and widely applied in fundamental research and the production of various chemicals. Its ability to efficiently and precisely control the expression of multiple genes is valuable for metabolic engineering. The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-mediated regulation enables complex gene expression programming; however, the regulation efficiency is often limited by the efficiency of pertinent regulators. Here, we developed CRISPR-mediated protein-tagging signal amplification system for simultaneous multiplexed gene activation and repression in S. cerevisiae. By introducing protein scaffolds (SPY and SunTag systems) to recruit multiple copies of regulators to different nuclease-deficient CRISPR proteins and design optimization, our system amplified gene regulation efficiency significantly. The gene activation and repression efficiencies reached as high as 34.9-fold and 95%, respectively, being 3.8- and 8.6-fold higher than those observed on the direct fusion of regulators with nuclease-deficient CRISPR proteins, respectively. We then applied the orthogonal bifunctional CRISPR-mediated transcriptional regulation system to regulate the expression of genes associated with 3-hydroxypropanoic acid production to deduce that CRISPR-associated regulator recruiting systems represent a robust method for simultaneously regulating multiple genes and rewiring metabolic pathways.

Microbial Adaptation to Enhance Stress Tolerance.

Microbial cell factories have been widely used in the production of various chemicals. Although synthetic biology is useful in improving the cell factories, adaptation is still widely applied to enhance its complex properties. Adaptation is an important strategy for enhancing stress tolerance in microbial cell factories. Adaptation involves gradual modifications of microorganisms in a stressful environment to enhance their tolerance. During adaptation, microorganisms use different mechanisms to enhance non-preferred substrate utilization and stress tolerance, thereby improving their ability to adapt for growth and survival. In this paper, the progress on the effects of adaptation on microbial substrate utilization capacity and environmental stress tolerance are reviewed, and the mechanisms involved in enhancing microbial adaptive capacity are discussed.

Glycerol promotes biomass accumulation of Klebsiella pneumoniae by activating dha regulon

Biomass accumulation is a key factor for successful biosynthesis of chemicals in industrial scale. As an important platform for biorefinery, Klebsiella pneumoniae has been widely used for the production of various chemicals. However, low production of chemicals is often ascribed to insufficient biomass. Herein we demonstrated that activation of dha regulon can efficiently promote biomass accumulation of K. pneumoniae in both minimal and nutrient medium. Transcriptome analysis revealed that dha regulon was activated by supply of 5 g/L glycerol in glucose medium, and neither glycerol was consumed nor 1,3-propanediol was produced before glucose was exhausted. Moreover, biofilm formation was retarded but cell motility was accelerated. Interestingly, the susceptibility of K. pneumoniae to common antibiotics was not elevated. Next, mutation and overexpression of the genes in dha regulon were conducted and results demonstrated that loss of the regulator dhaR led to growth defect. On the contrary, overexpression of dhaD, dhaB, dhaR and dhaT contributed partly to the promoted biomass accumulation in glucose medium. In summary, activation of dha regulon of K. pneumoniae enhanced biomass accumulation but had little impact on antibiotic susceptibility. This study provided a promising method for improving the productivity of valuable chemicals in industrial scale.

Transporter Engineering in Microbial Cell Factory Boosts Biomanufacturing Capacity.

Microbial cell factories (MCFs) are typical and widely used platforms in biomanufacturing for designing and constructing synthesis pathways of target compounds in microorganisms. In MCFs, transporter engineering is especially significant for improving the biomanufacturing efficiency and capacity through enhancing substrate absorption, promoting intracellular mass transfer of intermediate metabolites, and improving transmembrane export of target products. This review discusses the current methods and strategies of mining and characterizing suitable transporters and presents the cases of transporter engineering in the production of various chemicals in MCFs.

Visualization experimental study on NO2 condensation process: Insights into gas-fog-liquid-ice mode evolution

Pure nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a profitable feedstock for production of various chemicals. The condensation technology plays an essential role in NO2 enrichment during production or resource recovery from industrial exhausts, which, however, remains challenging in process optimization due to the lack of thorough comprehension on NO2 condensation behavior. In this work, the visualization experiments of NO2 condensation on the vertical SS316 surface at varying temperatures, NO2 mole fractions and volume flow rates in the absence and presence of non-condensable gas (NCG) were conducted. Three major NO2 condensation modes, the fog mode, the droplet-streamlet-film (DSF) coexistence mode, and the freezing mode, have been identified. The formation process of NO2 gas-fog-droplet-DSF mode as well as the occurrence frequency of streamlets (OFS) was quantified under different conditions. The higher OFS was found to contribute to greater overall heat transfer coefficient and condensate amount, showing the optimal parameters at each condition. Deeper insights into gas-fog, gas-liquid, and gas-ice phase transformations for NO2 were gained, revealing the unique effects of dimerization of NO2 to N2O4 on condensation. The dimerization triggers the facile formation (< 10 s) of N2O4 fog with increased intermolecular forces, the heterogeneity of heat and mass transfer in DSF mode with complex heat resistance network and condensate states, and the melting-thickening cycle of ice layer in the freezing process along with the release of dimerization reaction heat. The findings render a microscopic view of favorable heat and mass transfer towards optimal NO2 condensation strategies in practical uses.

Thermodynamic and Transport Properties of Biomass-Derived Furfural, Furfuryl Alcohol and Their Mixtures

The limited reserves and well-known disadvantages of using fossil energy sources have increased the need for appropriate renewable substitutes in the production of various chemicals and materials. Biomass has been shown to be worthy of attention since it can be converted to biofuels and value-added chemicals relatively easily. The design of biomass valorisation process requires knowledge on the thermodynamic behaviour of the biomass-derived compounds, such as furfural and furfuryl alcohol. The thermodynamic and transport properties of the binary system furfural + furfuryl alcohol were studied at various temperatures and pressures. Density, speed of sound and refractive index were measured in the temperature range T = (288.15–345.15) K and viscosity was measured at temperatures up to 373.15 K, all at atmospheric pressure. Further, the density of pure components was obtained in the temperature range (293.15–413.15) K for furfural and (293.15–373.15) K for furfuryl alcohol at pressures up to 60.0 MPa. The obtained density values were correlated using the modified Tammann–Tait equation with an average absolute deviation lower than 0.009% for furfural and furfuryl alcohol. The optimised parameters were used for the calculation of the isothermal compressibility, the isobaric thermal expansivity, the internal pressure and the isobaric and isochoric specific heat capacities. The reported data are a valuable source of information for the further application of the investigated compounds.

Green hydrogen based succinic acid and biopolymer production in a biorefinery: Adding value to CO2 from acidogenic fermentation

Dark fermentative biohydrogen (bio-H2) production is usually associated with the formation of CO2 and organic acids as by-products. Although bio-H2 is an attractive low-carbon renewable fuel, generation of CO2 during production limits its use in certain applications. Nevertheless, these gases can be used for the production of various chemicals and materials, which are currently being manufactured from fossil carbon feedstocks. Therefore, in the present work we report an integrated approach for effective utilization of this bio-H2 and CO2 generated during acidogenic fermentation (AF) for the production of bio-based succinic acid (SA) using bacterial strain C. amalonaticus. In addition, the organic acids generated in the effluent after AF were converted into polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) using enriched mixed microbial consortia. Results show that continuous supply of CO2 positively affected SA production (14.7 g L-1) in comparison to control operation (12.07 g L-1) where CO2 was supplied at the beginning of the cycle. Bio-H2 acted as an effective electron donor for the formation of reduced end product, SA. The organic acids were effectively utilized and 23 gPHB/g DCW (dry cell weight) was achieved. Among the acids acetic acid was consumed in major proportion followed by butyric and valeric acids. The biopolymer obtained was a homopolymer of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), which was confirmed using FTIR analysis. The biopolymer also depicted good thermal properties, which was analyzed by TGA, DSC and DTA analysis. This work represents a successful attempt to develop an integrated system capable of simultaneously producing biobased SA and PHA, both, valuable bio-based products with a huge market potential.