Chemical or industrial biotechnology is one of the future key technologies of bioeconomy and uses enzymatic and microbial systems to produce a variety of bulk and fine chemicals, fuels, materials, and pharmaceutical precursors based on renewable raw materials. Applying biochemistry, biocatalysis, bioinformatics, bioprocess engineering, electrobiotechnology, microbiology, molecular and synthetic biology, new sustainable production processes are developed and optimized.
Research Groups
Project Highlights
Nature holds ready a multitude of biocatalysts (enzymes) to transform biogenic substrates efficiently. However, these enzymes seldom meet the demands of technical processes which is why they need to be optimized in their robustness, amongst other things. Synthesis of new biobased products also requires especially designed enzymes with new mechanisms and specificities. The two professors, Dominik Grimm (Bioinformatics) and Volker Sieber (Chemistry of Biogenic Resources), work together on designing those innovative enzymes using protein chemical forecasts, microfluidic ultra-high throughput analytics and machine learning.
Vibrio natriegens is the fastest growing, non-pathogenic organism on our planet which, under optimal conditions, can double in less than ten minutes. Due to this outstanding capability, this bacterium is a promising new platform organism to generally increase productivity and decrease production costs of future biotechnological processes significantly. To fully draw from this potential, the professorship Microbial Biotechnology (Prof. Blombach) develops innovative production processes to produce chemicals and fuels from biogenic resources using Vibrio natriegens.
The analysis and screening of large metagenome libraries for functional enzymes should be enabled and applied by establishing a microfluidic platform in combination with cell-free enzyme production.
In the project, TUM is working together with other research partners on the microbial production of bulk chemicals based on process waters that are produced as a by-product or residual stream in the thermochemical conversion of biomass.
Xylan-rich biomass waste streams accumulate in the processing of biogenic raw materials in large quantities. The goal is the development of a biotechnological platform for the targeted use u.a. for the production of hydrocolloids and branched alkanes as sustainable lubricant additives.
