Professor Krist V. Gernaey, DTU Chemical Engineering, is leading the research project, together with Professor Jochen Förster, DTU Biosustain, which over the next 6 years will achieve a thorough understanding of the influence of heterogeneity on performance of gas fermentation across bioreactor scales.
The research project will work on a new way to produce food and chemicals – not by using sugar, but by using gas, such as methane. It is more sustainable because it does not require agricultural land and uses carbon more efficiently.
But it is technically challenging. For it to work well, one must ensure that the gases move quickly enough around the system, and that the microorganisms that perform the conversion work efficiently – even though the conditions are not the same everywhere in the reactor (this is called 'heterogeneity').
In the project, the researchers will use computer models to understand how these differences affect production, and how to best scale up the process to large scale.
The project will obtain efficient gas fermentation by combining two steps:
- First, methane is converted into protein, which microorganisms produce, and carbon dioxide is formed.
- Then, the leftovers of methane and carbon dioxide are used along with added hydrogen to produce alcohols and organic acids that can be used for many purposes. Finally, what is left of methane is returned to step 1, so no gas goes to waste.
Tests will be carried out both in laboratories (small scale) and in large pilot plants, combining detailed biological data and computer models to find the most efficient way to run a gas fermentation process.
