biological and chemical method for the capture and conversion of an inorganic carbon compound and /

专利摘要:
USE OF OXYHYDROGEN MICRO-ORGANISMS FOR CAPTURE AND CONVERSION OF NON PHOTOSYNTHETIC CARBON SOURCES AND / OR INORGANIC IN USEFUL ORGANIC COMPOUNDS. Compositions and methods for a hybrid chemical and biological process that captures and converts carbon dioxide and / or other forms of inorganic carbon and / or sources of C1 carbon including, but not limited to, carbon monoxide, methane, methanol, formate, or formic acid, and / or mixtures containing C1 chemicals including, but not limited to various gasogen compositions, in organic chemicals including biofuel or other valuable biomass, chemical, industrial, or pharmaceutical products are provided. The present invention, in certain embodiments, fixes inorganic carbon or C1 carbon sources in longer carbon chain organic chemistry using microorganisms capable of carrying out the oxy-hydrogen reaction and the autotrophic fixation of CO2 in one or more process steps.
公开号:BR112012027661B1
申请号:R112012027661-1
申请日:2011-04-27
公开日:2020-12-08
发明作者:John Reed；lisa Dyson
申请人:Kiverdi, Inc.；
IPC主号:

专利说明:

RELATED REQUESTS
[001] This patent application claims priority under 35 USC §119 (e) for US Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 328,184, filed on April 27, 2010 and entitled “USE OF OXYHYDROGEN MICROORGANISMS FOR NON-PHOTOSYNTHETIC CARBON CAPTURE AND CONVERSION OF INORGANIC CARBON SOURCES INTO USEFUL ORGANIC COMPOUNDS ”. This patent application is also a partial continuation of International Patent Application No. PCT / US2010 / 001402, filed on May 12, 2010, and entitled “BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL PROCESS UTILIZING CHEMOAUTOTROPHIC MICROORGANISMS FOR THE CHEMOSYNTHETIC FIXATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND / OR OTHER INORGANIC CARBON SOURCES INTO ORGANIC COMPOUNDS, AND THE GENERATION OF ADDITIONAL USEFUL PRODUCTS ”, which is a partial continuation of US Serial Patent Application No. 12 / 613,550, filed on November 6, 2009, and is entitled“ BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL PROCESS UTILIZING CHEMOAUTOTROPHIC MICROORGANISMS FOR THE CHEMOSYNTHETIC FIXATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND / OR OTHER INORGANIC CARBON SOURCES INTO ORGANIC COMPOUNDS, AND THE GENERATION OF ADDITIONAL USEFUL PRODUCTS ”, which claims the 6th application of the 7th patent application in the US Patent Application November 2008, and is entitled, “BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL PROCESS UTILIZING CHEMOAUTOTROPHIC MICROORGANISMS FOR THE RECYCLING OF CARB ON FROM CARBON DIOXIDE AND OTHER INORGANIC CARBON SOURCES THROUGH CHEMOSYNTHESIS INTO BIOFUEL AND ADDITIONAL USEFUL PRODUCTS ”. Each of these patent applications is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[002] The present invention is in the technical areas of biofuels, biofuel, carbon capture, carbon dioxide to fuel conversions, carbon recycling, carbon sequestration, energy storage, gas to liquids, energy wasted on fuels, gas synthesis, and renewable / alternative and / or low carbon dioxide energy sources. Specifically, the present invention is a unique example of the use of biocatalysts in a biological and chemical process to fix carbon dioxide and / or other forms of inorganic carbon and / or other sources of C1 carbon in longer chain organic chemicals in a non-photosynthetic process powered by low-carbon energy sources and / or wasted energy sources. Furthermore, the present invention involves the production of chemical co-products that are cogenerated through carbon fixation reaction steps and / or non-biological reaction steps as part of a general carbon capture and conversion process or gas conversion process. synthesis. The present invention can allow for the efficient and economical capture of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or from a point source of carbon dioxide emissions, as well as the economic use of wasted energy sources and / or renewable energy sources and / or low carbon energy sources, for the production of liquid transport fuel and / or other organic chemicals, which will help address climate change induced by the greenhouse effect and contribute to the domestic production of liquid transport fuels and / or other organic chemical substances without any dependence on agriculture. BACKGROUND
[003] Great interest and resources were directed towards the development of technologies that use renewable energy or wasted energy for the conversion of carbon dioxide, or other low-value carbon sources, into organic chemicals useful to provide alternatives to materials, fuels and chemical substances derived from petroleum or other fossil sources. Most of the focus in the area of CO2 conversion has been placed on biological approaches that use photosynthesis to fix CO2 in biomass or final products, while some effort has been directed to chemical and totally abiotic processes to fix CO2.
[004] One type of chemical CO2-to-organic approach that has received relatively less attention is that of hybrid chemical / biological processes in which the biological step is limited to the fixation of CO2 only, corresponding to the dark reaction of photosynthesis. The potential advantages of such a CO2-to-organic hybrid chemical process include the ability to combine enzymatic capabilities obtained over billions of years of evolution when fixing CO2, with a wide variety of abiotic technologies to energize the process, such as solar, thermal PV solar, wind, geothermal, hydroelectric or nuclear. Microorganisms that perform carbon fixation without light may be contained in more controlled and protected environments, less prone to water and nutrient loss, contamination, or damage to the climate than can be used to grow photosynthetic microorganisms. Furthermore, an increase in the capacity of the bioreactor can be achieved with vertical rather than horizontal construction, potentially making it much more efficient in relation to land use. A hybrid chemical / biological system offers the possibility of a CO2-to-organic chemical process that avoids many disadvantages of photosynthesis while retaining the biological capabilities for complex organic synthesis from CO2.
[005] Chemoautotrophic microorganisms are, in general, microbes that can perform CO2 fixation as in the photosynthetic dark reaction, but that can reduce the equivalents needed for CO2 fixation from an external inorganic source, instead of having to generate them internally through the photosynthetic light reaction. Biochemical carbon-fixing pathways that occur in chemoautotrophs include the reductive tricarboxylic acid cycle, the Calvin-Benson-Bassham cycle and the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway.
[006] Previous works are known, which refer to certain applications of chemoautotrophic microorganisms in the capture and conversion of CO2 gas into fixed carbon. However, many of these approaches have suffered from deficiencies that have limited their effectiveness, financial feasibility, feasibility and commercial adoption of the described processes. The present invention, in certain respects, addresses one or more of the above deficiencies.
[007] It is believed that the present invention that uses oxy-hydrogen microorganisms in chemosynthetic CO2 fixation under carefully controlled oxygen levels may have advantages for the production of longer chain organic compounds (for example, C5 and longer) . The ability to produce longer chain organic compounds is an important advantage for the present invention, since energy densities (energy per unit volume) are, in general, higher for longer chain organic compounds, and compatibility with the current transport fleet it is, in general, larger in relation to, for example, products of shorter chain, such as products of C1 and C2. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[008] In response to a need in the art, the inventors recognized, in making the invention, an innovative combined biological and chemical process for the capture and conversion of inorganic carbon and / or C1 carbon sources into longer chain organic compounds, and, particularly, organic compounds with C5 or longer lengths, through the use of hydrogen oxide microorganisms for carbon capture and fixation are described. In some modalities, the process can couple the efficient production of high value organic compounds, with liquid hydrocarbon fuel, with the disposal of residual carbon sources, as well as with the capture of CO2, which can generate additional income.
[009] In one aspect, a biological and chemical method for the capture and conversion of an inorganic carbon compound and / or an organic compound that contains only one carbon atom in an organic chemical is described. In some embodiments, the method comprises introducing an inorganic carbon compound and / or an organic compound that contains only one carbon atom in an environment suitable for maintaining hydrogen oxide microorganisms and / or capable of maintaining oxide hydrogen microorganism extracts ; and converting the inorganic carbon compound and / or the organic compound containing only one carbon atom into the organic chemical and / or its precursor in the environment through at least one chemosynthetic carbon fixation reaction using the oxide microorganisms -hydrogen and / or cell extracts that contain enzymes from the oxy-hydrogen microorganisms. In some embodiments, the chemosynthetic fixation reaction is at least partially driven by chemical and / or electrochemical energy provided by electron donors and electron receptors that have been generated chemically and / or electrochemically and / or are introduced into the environment from at least an external source in the environment.
[0010] In one aspect, a bioreactor is described. The bioreactor comprises, in a set of modalities, a first column comprising an upper portion and a lower portion; and a second column comprising an upper portion and a lower portion, the upper portion of the second column fluidly connected to the upper portion of the first column, and the lower portion of the second column fluidly connected to the lower portion of the first column. In some embodiments, the bioreactor is constructed and arranged so that when a liquid is circulated between the first and second columns, a volume of gas is substantially stationary at the top of the first column and / or the second column. In some embodiments, the volume of gas occupies at least about 2% of the total volume of the column on which the volume is positioned.
[0011] In another aspect, a method of operating a bioreactor is provided. The method comprises, in some embodiments, circulating a liquid comprising a growth medium between a first column and a second column, in which, during operation, a volume of gas remains substantially stationary at the top of the first column and / or the second column, and the volume of gas occupies at least about 2% of the total volume of the column on which the volume is positioned.
[0012] In one aspect, an electrolysis device is provided. In some embodiments, the electrolysis device comprises a chamber built and arranged to electrolyze water to produce oxygen and hydrogen; and an outlet comprising a separator constructed and arranged to separate at least a portion of the oxygen in a stream from at least a portion of the hydrogen in a stream, so that the hydrogen content of the fluid exiting the separator is suitable for use as a feed stream to a reactor that contains a culture of microorganisms of oxy-hydrogen.
[0013] In another aspect, a method of operating an electrolysis device is described. The method comprises, in some modalities, electrolytic water to produce a first stream containing oxygen and hydrogen; and separating at least a portion of oxygen from at least a portion of hydrogen to produce a second stream relatively in hydrogen compared to the first stream, where the second stream is suitable for use for use as a supply stream for a reactor containing a culture of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms.
[0014] The present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for capturing carbon dioxide from gas streams containing atmospheric carbon dioxide and / or carbon dioxide or carbon dioxide in dissolved, liquefied or chemically linked through a chemical and biological process that uses mandatory or optional oxy-hydrogen microorganisms, and / or cell extracts that contain oxy-hydrogen microorganism enzymes in one or more steps of the carbon fixation process.
[0015] The present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for using C1 carbon sources including, but not limited to, carbon monoxide, methane, methanol, formic or formic acid, and / or mixtures containing chemical substances C1 including, but not limited to, various synthesis gas compositions generated from various aerated, pyrolyzed or fixed carbon raw materials reformed in steam, and converts said C1 chemicals into longer chain organic compounds.
[0016] The present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for the recovery, processing and use of the organic compounds produced by chemosynthetic reactions carried out by oxy-hydrogen microorganisms to fix inorganic carbon and / or C1 carbon sources in organic compounds longer chains. The present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for maintaining and controlling oxygen levels in the carbon-fixing environment for enhanced (for example, optimal) production of C5 or longer organic compound products by fixing carbon. The present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for the generation, processing and delivery of chemical nutrients necessary for carbon fixation and maintenance of cultures of oxide-hydrogen microorganisms, including, but not limited to, the provision of donors of electron and electron receptors required for non-photosynthetic carbon fixation. The present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for maintaining a conductive environment for carbon fixation, and the recovery and recycling of unused chemical nutrients and process water.
[0017] The present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for chemical process steps that occur in series and / or in parallel with the chemosynthetic reaction steps that: convert unrefined raw input chemicals into more refined chemicals than they are suitable to support the chemosynthetic carbon fixation step; that converts energy inputs into a chemical form that can be used to trigger chemosynthesis, and specifically into chemical energy in the form of electron donors and electron receptors; which directs inorganic carbon captured from industrial or atmospheric or aquatic sources to the process carbon fixation steps under conditions that are suitable to support the fixation of chemosynthetic carbon by oxide-hydrogen microorganisms or enzymes and / or direct C1 chemicals derived from residual or low-value carbon sources, such as carbon monoxide, methane, methanol, formate or formic acid, and / or mixtures containing C1 chemicals that include, but are not limited to, various syngas compositions derived from gasification, pyrolysis or the steam reforming of various sources of residual or low carbon carbon that can be used by the oxide hydrogen microorganism as carbon sources and any source of energy for the synthesis of longer chain organic chemicals; that further processes products from the carbon fixation steps in a form suitable for storage, shipping, and marketing, and / or safe disposal in order to result in a net reduction of gaseous CO2 released into the atmosphere and / or improvement of a residual or low-value material in a finished chemical, fuel, or nutritional product. The fully chemical process steps combined with the chemosynthetic carbon fixation steps constitute the general process of carbon capture and conversion of some embodiments of the present invention.
[0018] A characteristic of certain modalities of the present invention is the inclusion of one or more process steps in a chemical process for the capture of inorganic carbon and conversion into fixed carbon products using oxide-hydrogen microorganisms and / or enzymes of Oxy-hydrogen microorganisms as a biocatalyst for fixing carbon dioxide in gas streams that contain carbon dioxide or the atmosphere or water and / or dissolved or solid forms of inorganic carbon in organic compounds. In some such embodiments, carbon dioxide containing flue gas, or process gas, or air, or inorganic carbon in solution, such as dissolved carbon dioxide, carbonate ion, or bicarbonate ion, including aqueous solutions, such as seawater , or solid-phase inorganic carbon, such as, but not limited to, carbonates and bicarbonates, is pumped or otherwise added to a vessel or container containing nutrient medium and hydrogen oxide microorganisms. In some such cases, oxy-hydrogen microorganisms perform chemosynthesis to fix inorganic carbon in organic compounds using chemical energy stored in molecular hydrogen and / or valence electrons or conduction in solid-state electrode materials and / or one or more from the following list of electron donors pumped or otherwise supplied to the nutrient medium including, but not limited to: ammonia; ammonium; carbon monoxide; dithionite; elemental sulfur; Hydrocarbons; metabisulfites; nitric oxide; nitrides; sulfates, such as thiosulfates, including, but not limited to, sodium thiosulfate (Na2S2O3) or calcium thiosulfate (CaS2O3); sulfides, such as hydrogen sulfide; sulfites; thionate; thionite; transition metals or their sulfides, oxides, chalcogenides, halides, hydroxides, oxy-hydroxides, phosphates, sulfates, or carbonates, in solid or soluble phases. In some embodiments, electrons from the conduction or valence layer in solid-state electrode materials can be used. Electron donors can be oxidized by electron receptors in the chemosynthetic reaction. Electron receptors that can be used in the chemosynthetic reaction step include oxygen and / or other electron receptors that include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: carbon dioxide, ferric iron or other transition metal ions, nitrates , nitrides, sulfates, oxygen, or holes in the valence or conduction layer in solid-state electrode materials.
[0019] A feature of certain embodiments of the present invention is the inclusion of one or more process steps in a chemical process for the conversion of C1 carbon sources, including, but not limited to, carbon monoxide, methane, methanol, formate or formic acid, and / or mixtures containing C1 chemical substances, including, but not limited to, various synthesis gas compositions generated from various steam-reformed carbonated, pyrolyzed, or fixed carbon materials using oxy-hydrogen microorganisms and / or enzymes of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms, as a biocatalyst for the conversion of C1 chemicals into longer chain organic chemicals (ie, C2 or longer carbon chain molecules and, in some embodiments, C5 or longer). In some such modalities, C1 containing synthesis gas, or process gas, or chemical substances C1 in a pure liquid form or dissolved in solution is pumped or otherwise added to a vessel or container containing nutrient medium and oxide microorganisms -hydrogen. In some such cases, oxy-hydrogen microorganisms perform biochemical synthesis to elongate C1 chemicals into longer-chain organic chemicals using the chemical energy stored in the chemical C1, and / or molecular hydrogen and / or electrons valence or conduction in solid-state electrode materials and / or one or more of the following list of electron donors pumped or otherwise supplied to the nutrient medium including, but not limited to: ammonia; ammonium; carbon monoxide; dithionite; elemental sulfur; Hydrocarbons; metabisulfites; nitric oxide; nitrides; sulfates, such as thiosulfates including, but not limited to, sodium thiosulfate (Na2S2O3) or calcium thiosulfate (CaS2O3); sulfides, such as hydrogen sulfide; sulfites; thionate; thionite; transition metals or their sulfides, oxides, chalcogenides, halides, hydroxides, oxide hydroxides, sulfates, or carbonates, in solid or soluble phases. Electron donors can be oxidized by electron receptors in a chemosynthetic reaction. Electron receptors that can be used in this reaction step include oxygen and / or other electron receptors including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: carbon dioxide, ferric iron or other transition metal ions, nitrates, nitrides , oxygen, or holes in solid-state electrode materials.
[0020] The chemosynthetic reaction step or process steps through which carbon dioxide and / or inorganic carbon is fixed in organic carbon in the form of organic compounds and biomass and / or the reaction steps that convert C1 chemicals into chemicals longer-chain organic compounds in which a C1 chemical, such as, but not limited to, carbon monoxide, methane, methanol, formate or formic acid, and / or mixtures containing C1 chemicals including, but not limited to, various gas compositions of synthesis generated from various steam-reformed carbonated, pyrolysed, or fixed carbon raw materials are biochemically converted to longer-chain organic chemicals (ie, C2 or longer carbon chain molecules and, in some modalities, C5 or longer) can be performed in aerobic, microaerobic, anoxic, anaerobic, or optional conditions. An optional environment is considered to be one that has upper aerobic layers and lower anaerobic layers caused by stratification of the water column.
[0021] The oxygen level is controlled, in some embodiments of the present invention, so that the production of organic compounds targeted by the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms through carbon fixation is controlled (for example, optimized). One goal of controlling oxygen levels is to control (for example, optimize) the intracellular Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) concentration by reducing cellular oxygen and producing ATP by oxidative phosphorylation, while simultaneously keeping the environment sufficiently low so that a high ratio of NADH (or NADPH) to NAD (or NADP) is also maintained.
[0022] An advantage of using hydrogen oxide microorganisms over strictly anaerobic acetogenic or methanogenic microorganisms for carbon capture applications and / or synthesis gas conversion applications is the higher oxygen tolerance of oxide hydrogen microorganisms.
[0023] An additional advantage of using oxy-hydrogen microorganisms for carbon capture applications and / or synthesis gas conversion applications and / or biofuel production over the use of acetogens is that the production of ATP energized by the reaction of Oxy-hydrogen results in a water product, which can be readily incorporated into the process stream, instead of the generally undesirable acetic acid or butyric acid products, which can harm microorganisms by reducing the pH of the solution or accumulating in levels toxic.
[0024] An additional feature of certain modalities of the present invention in relation to the source, production or recycling of electron donors used by the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms to fix carbon dioxide in organic compounds and / or to synthesize organic carbon chain molecules longer from C1 chemicals. Electron donors used for carbon dioxide capture and carbon fixation can be produced or recycled in certain embodiments of the present invention electrochemically or thermochemically using the power of various different low-carbon and / or renewable energy technologies including , but without limitation: photovoltaic power, solar thermal, wind power, hydroelectric, nuclear, geothermal, enhanced geothermal, ocean thermal, ocean wave power, tidal power. Electron donors can also be of mineralogical origin including, but not limited to, minerals containing reduced S and Fe. Electron donors used in certain embodiments of the present invention can also be produced or recycled through chemical reactions with hydrocarbons that may or may not be a nonrenewable fossil fuel, but in which said chemical reactions produce low carbon dioxide gas emissions or null. For example, the oxide reduction reactions that produce a carbonate and a hydrogen product that can be used as electron donors in the carbon fixation reaction steps of certain embodiments of the present invention include:
and / or

[0025] An additional feature of certain embodiments of the present invention concerns the formation and recovery of organic compounds and / or biomass from the chemosynthetic carbon fixation step or steps. These organic compounds and / or biomass products can have a variety of applications.
[0026] An additional feature of certain modalities of the present invention concerns the use of oxide-hydrogen microorganisms modified in the carbon fixation step / steps so that a higher quantity and / or quality of organic, biochemical, or biomass compounds is generated through chemosynthesis. Oxy-hydrogen microbes used in these steps can be modified using artificial means including, but not limited to, accelerated mutagenesis (for example, using ultraviolet light or chemical treatments), genetic modification or engineering, hybridization, synthetic biology or crossover traditional selective. Possible modifications of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms include, but are not limited to, those aimed at producing increased quantity and / or quality of organic compounds and / or biomass for use as biofuels, or as raw materials for the production of biofuels including, but without limitation, JP-8 jet fuel, diesel, gasoline, biodiesel, butanol, ethanol, hydrocarbons, methane and pseudo-vegetable oil or any other hydrocarbon suitable for use as a renewable / alternative fuel that leads to reduced greenhouse gas emissions .
[0027] Also described are the compositions and methods that reduce the risk of carrying out gas fermentations that use mixtures of hydrogen and oxygen in the invented process.
[0028] Compositions and methods that take advantage of oxygen tolerance and ability to use oxygen as an electron receptor owned by oxide-hydrogen microorganisms to allow a system to convert water into hydrogen or hydride electron donors and electron receptors of oxygen, which has improved efficiency in relation to the application of electrolysis of the current technique for the purpose of generating hydrogen or hydride electron donors and electron oxygen receptors, are also described.
[0029] Process steps for the recovery and additional finishing of useful chemical substances produced both by the biological carbon fixation steps of the process and from non-biological process steps are also described.
[0030] Other advantages and innovative features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of various non-limiting modalities of the invention, when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. All publications, patent applications and patents mentioned in the text are incorporated by reference in their entirety. In cases where the present specification and a document incorporated by reference include conflicting and / or inconsistent descriptions, this specification will prevail. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0031] Non-limiting modalities of the present invention will be described by way of example with reference to the attached figures, which are schematic and are not intended to be scaled. For the sake of clarity, not every component is marked on each figure, as well as not every component of each embodiment of the invention is shown where the illustration is not necessary to allow those of skill in the art to understand the invention. In the figures:
[0032] Figure 1 is a flow chart of the general process for one embodiment of this invention for a carbon capture and fixation process;
[0033] Figure 2 is a process flow chart for another embodiment of the present invention with CO2 capture performed by a microorganism capable of carrying out an oxide-hydrogen reaction (for example, purple non-sulfur bacteria that oxidize hydrogen) to produce a lipid-rich biomass that is converted to JP-8 jet fuel;
[0034] Figure 3 is a diagram of a bioreactor project that can avoid dangerous mixtures of hydrogen and oxygen by exploiting the low solubilities of hydrogen gas and oxygen in water while supplying the oxygen and hydrogen microorganism with oxygen and hydrogen needed for energy cellular and carbon fixation;
[0035] Figure 4 is a diagram of a bioreactor project that takes advantage of the relatively high solubility of carbon dioxide and the strong ability of the oxide-hydrogen microorganism to capture carbon dioxide from relatively diluted currents using a carbon concentration (CCM), to remove CO2 from a diluted gas mixture and separate it from low solubility gases, such as oxygen and nitrogen; and
[0036] Figure 5 is an electrolysis technology that is specially designed to take advantage of the tolerance of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms and the need for a certain concentration of oxygen by decreasing the complete separation of hydrogen and oxygen produced from standard electrolysis. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0037] The present invention provides, in certain embodiments, compositions and methods for the capture and fixation of carbon dioxide from gas streams containing carbon dioxide and / or atmospheric carbon dioxide or carbon dioxide in liquefied or chemically bonded form through a chemical and biological process that uses mandatory or optional oxy-hydrogen microorganisms, and / or cell extracts that contain enzymes of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms in one or more process steps. The fixation of inorganic carbon sources other than CO2 and / or other sources of C1 carbon is also described. Cell extracts include, but are not limited to: a lysate, extract, fraction or purified product that exhibits chemosynthetic enzyme activity that can be created by standard methods from oxy-hydrogen microorganisms. In addition, the present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for the recovery, processing and use of chemicals from the chemosynthetic reaction step or steps carried out by oxy-hydrogen microorganisms to fix inorganic carbon in organic compounds and / or step or synthetic reaction steps carried out by oxy-hydrogen microorganisms to elongate C1 molecules to longer-chain organic chemicals. Finally, the present invention, in certain embodiments, provides compositions and methods for the production and processing and delivery of chemical nutrients necessary for the chemoautotrophic carbon fixation by oxy-hydrogen microorganisms, and particularly electron donors including, but not limited to , molecular hydrogen and / or electrical power and electron receptors including, but not limited to, oxygen and carbon dioxide to cause the carbon fixation reaction; compositions and methods for maintaining a conductive environment for carbon fixation by oxide-hydrogen microorganisms; and compositions and methods for the removal of chemosynthesis chemicals from the oxy-hydrogen culture environment and the recovery and recycling of unused chemical nutrients.
[0038] The terms "molecular hydrogen", "dihydrogen" and "H2" are used interchangeably.
[0039] The terms “oxide-hydrogen microorganism” and “oxide-hydrogen microorganism” are used interchangeably in the report. Oxy-hydrogen microorganisms are generally described in Chapter 5, Section III of Thermophilic Bacteria, a book by Jakob Kristjansson, CRC Press, 1992, which is incorporated by reference. In general, oxy-hydrogen microorganisms are capable of carrying out the oxy-hydrogen reaction. Oxyhydrogen microorganisms have, in general, the ability to use molecular hydrogen by means of hydrogenases with some of the electrons donated by H2 being used for the reduction of NAD + (and / or other intracellular reduction equivalents) and the rest of the electrons for aerobic breathing. In addition, oxy-hydrogen microorganisms are, in general, capable of fixing CO2 autotrophically, through passages such as the reverse Calvin cycle or the reverse citric acid cycle.
[0040] Furthermore, the terms "oxy-hydrogen reaction" and "knallgas reaction" are used interchangeably throughout the document to refer to the microbial oxidation of molecular hydrogen by molecular oxygen. The oxy-hydrogen reaction is, in general, expressed as:
and / or stoichiometric equivalents of this reaction.
[0041] Hydrogen-exemplifying microorganisms that can be used in one or more process steps of certain embodiments of the present invention include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: purple non-sulfur photosynthetic bacteria including, but not limited to, Rhodopseudomonas palustris, Rhodopseudomonas capsulata, Rhodopseudomonas viridis, Rhodopseudomonas sulfoviridis, Rhodopseudomonas blastica, Rhodopseudomonas spheroides, Rhodopseudomonas acidophila and other Rhodopseudomonas sp., Rhodospirillum rubrum, and other Rhodospirum; Rhodococcus opacus and other Rhodococcus sp .; Rhizobium japonicum and others Rhizobium sp .; Thiocapsa roseopersicina and others Thiocapsa sp .; Hydrogenovora Pseudomonas, Pseudomonas hidrogenothermophila, and other Pseudomonas sp .; Hydrogenomonas pantotropha, Hydrogenomonas eutropha, Hidrogenomonas facilis, and other Hydrogenomonas sp .; Hidrogenobacter thermophilus and others Hidrogenobacter sp .; Hidrogenovibrio marinus and others Hidrogenovibrio sp .; Helicobacter pylori and other Helicobacter sp .; Xanthobacter sp .; Hidrogenophaga sp .; Bradyrhizobium japonicum and others Bradyrhizobium sp .; Ralstonia eutropha and others Ralstonia sp .; Alcaligenes eutrophus and others Alcaligenes sp .; Variovorax paradoxus, and others Variovorax sp .; Acidovorax facilis, and others Acidovorax sp .; cyanobacteria including, but not limited to, Anabaena oscillarioides, Anabaena spiroides, Anabaena cylindrica, and other Anabaena sp .; green algae including, but not limited to, Scenedesmus obliquus and other Scenedesmus sp., Chlamydomonas reinhardii and other Chlamydomonas sp., Ankistrodesmus sp., Rhaphidium polymorphium and other Rhaphidium sp .; as well as a consortium of microorganisms that include oxy-hydrogen microorganisms.
[0042] The different oxygen-microorganisms that can be used in certain modalities of the present invention can be native to a range of environments including, but not limited to, hydrothermal vents, geothermal vents, hot springs, cold fumes, submerged aquifers, lakes salt, salt formations, mines, acid mine drainage, mining waste, oil wells, refinery wastewater, water contaminated by oil, gas, or hydrocarbon; thin layers of coal, the deep subsurface, wastewater and sewage treatment plants, geothermal power plants, sulfate fields, soils including, but not limited to, soils contaminated by hydrocarbons and / or located under or about oil or gas wells , oil refineries, pipelines, gas stations. They may or may not be extremophiles, including, but not limited to, thermophiles, hyperthermophils, acophiles, halophils, and psychrophiles.
[0043] In some embodiments, relatively long-chain chemicals can be produced. For example, the organic chemical produced in some embodiments may include compounds with carbon chain lengths of at least C5, at least C10, at least C15, at least C20, between about C5 and about C30, between about C10 and about C30, between about C15 and about C30, or between about C20 and about C30.
[0044] Figure 1 illustrates the general process flowchart for modalities of the present invention that have a process step for generating electron donors (eg, molecular hydrogen electron donors) suitable to support the chemosynthesis of an energy input and gross inorganic chemical input; followed by the recovery of chemical by-products from the electron donor generation stage; delivery of electron donors generated together with electron receivers of oxygen, water, nutrients, and CO2 from a point of industrial combustion gas source, for a chemosynthetic reaction step or steps using the hydrogen oxide microorganisms for capture and fixing carbon dioxide, creating chemical and biomass by-products through chemosynthetic reactions; followed by the process steps for the recovery of both chemicals and biomass from the process stream; and recycling unused nutrients and process water, as well as a cell mass needed to maintain microbial culture, back to the carbon fixation reaction steps.
[0045] In the modality illustrated in Figure 1, the flue gas containing CO2 is captured from a point source or emitter. The electron donors (eg H2) needed for chemosynthesis can be generated from the entry of inorganic chemicals and energy. The flue gas can be pumped through bioreactors that contain oxy-hydrogen microorganisms with the electron donors and receptors needed to cause chemosynthesis and a suitable medium to support microbial culture and carbon fixation through chemosynthesis. Cell culture flows continuously in and out of the bioreactors. After the cell culture leaves the bioreactors, the cell mass can be separated from the liquid medium. The cell mass needed to replenish the cell culture population to a desirable (for example, optimal) level can be recycled back to the bioreactor. Excess cell mass can be dried to form a dry biomass product that can also be post-processed into various chemical, fuel or nutritional products. Following the separation step, extracellular chemicals from the chemosynthetic reaction can be removed from the process flow and recovered. Then, any unwanted residual product that may be present is removed. Then, the liquid medium and any unused nutrients can be recycled back to the bioreactors.
[0046] Many of the reduced inorganic chemicals by which chemoautotrophs grow (for example, H2, H2S, ferrous iron, ammonium, Mn2 +) can be readily produced using electrochemical and / or thermochemical processes known in the chemical engineering technique that they can optionally be powered by a variety of renewable and / or low carbon sources or without power carbon dioxide emissions, including wind, hydroelectric, nuclear, photovoltaic, or solar thermal.
[0047] Certain embodiments of the present invention use renewable and / or low-carbon or carbon-dioxide-free sources of power in the production of electron donors including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: photovoltaic, solar, wind, hydroelectric, nuclear, geothermal, enhanced geothermal, ocean thermal, ocean wave power, tidal power. In certain embodiments of the present invention, oxy-hydrogen microorganisms function as biocatalysts for the conversion of renewable energy and / or low or zero carbon emission energy into liquid hydrocarbon fuel, or high energy density organic compounds, in general, with CO2 captured from combustion gases, or from the atmosphere, or ocean serving as a carbon source. These modalities of the present invention can provide renewable energy technologies with the ability to produce a transport fuel that has significantly higher energy density than if renewable energy sources are used to produce hydrogen gas - which has to be stored in systems relatively heavy storage devices (for example, tanks or storage materials) - or if used to charge batteries, which have a relatively low energy density. In addition, the liquid hydrocarbon fuel product of certain embodiments of the present invention may be more compatible with the current transportation infrastructure, compared to battery or hydrogen energy storage options.
[0048] The position of the process step or steps for the generation of electron donors (for example, molecular hydrogen electron donors) in the general process flow of certain embodiments of the present invention is illustrated in Figure 1 by Box 3, marked as “Generation of electron donor”. Electron donors produced in certain embodiments of the present invention such as using electrochemical and / or thermochemical processes known in the art and chemical engineering and / or generated from natural sources include, but are not limited to, molecular hydrogen and / or valence electrons or conduction in solid-state electrode materials and / or other reducing agents, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: ammonia; ammonium; carbon monoxide; dithionite; elemental sulfur; Hydrocarbons; metabisulfites; nitric oxide; nitrides; sulfates, such as thiosulfates including, but not limited to, sodium thiosulfate (Na2S2O3) or calcium thiosulfate (CaS2O3); sulfides, such as hydrogen sulfide; sulfites; thionate; thionite; transition metals or their sulfides, oxides, chalcogenides, halides, hydroxides, oxy-hydroxides, sulfates, or carbonates, in solid or soluble phases.
[0049] Certain embodiments of the present invention use molecular hydrogen as the electron donor. Hydrogen electron donors are generated by methods known in the art of chemical and process engineering, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: through electrolysis of water by approaches including, but not limited to, the use of Exchange Membranes Proton (PEM), liquid electrolytes such as KOH, high pressure electrolysis, high temperature steam electrolysis (HTES); thermochemical division of water through methods including, but not limited to, the iron oxide cycle, cerium (IV) oxide-cerium (III) cycle, zinc zinc oxide cycle, sulfur-iodine cycle, copper-chlorine, calcium-bromine-iron cycle, hybrid sulfur cycle; hydrogen sulfide electrolysis; thermochemical and / or electrochemical division of hydrogen sulfide; other thermochemical or electrochemical processes known to produce hydrogen with zero or low carbon dioxide emissions including, but not limited to: methane reform permitted by carbon capture and sequestration; coal gasification permitted by carbon capture and sequestration; the Kvnerner process and other processes that generate a carbon black product; gasification or pyrolysis of biomass allowed by carbon capture and sequestration; and reduction of half cell from H + to H2 accompanied by oxidation of half cell from electron sources, including, but not limited to, ferrous iron (Fe2 +) oxidized to ferric iron (Fe3 +) or the oxidation of sulfur compounds through which sulfur or oxidized iron can be recycled to a reduced state through additional chemical reaction with minerals including, but not limited to, metal sulfides, hydrogen sulfide, or hydrocarbons.
[0050] In certain embodiments of the present invention, hydrogen electron donors are not necessarily generated with zero or low carbon dioxide emissions, however, hydrogen is generated from residual or low energy sources with the use of methods known in the chemical and process engineering technique including, but not limited to, gasification, pyrolysis, or steam reforming of raw materials such as, but not limited to, municipal waste, black liquor, agricultural waste, wood waste, filamented natural gas , biogas, sour gas, methane hydrates, tires, sewage, feces, straw, and low-value, highly lignocellulosic biomass in general.
[0051] In certain embodiments of the present invention that use molecular hydrogen as an electron donor for carbon fixation reactions carried out by oxy-hydrogen microorganisms, there may be a chemical co-product formed in the generation of molecular hydrogen with the use of energy input renewable and / or CO2-free. If water is used as a source of hydrogen, then oxygen can be a co-product of dividing water through processes, including, but not limited to, thermochemical or electrolysis water division. In certain embodiments of the present invention, with the use of water as a source of hydrogen, some oxygen co-product can be used in the step of fixing oxide-hydrogen carbon for the production of intracellular ATP through the enzymatically linked oxide-hydrogen reaction oxidative phosphorylation. In certain embodiments of the present invention, oxygen produced by dividing water beyond what is required to maintain favorable conditions (for example, optimum) for carbon fixation and the production of organic compost by oxy-hydrogen microorganisms can be processed in a suitable form for commercialization through the process steps known in the art and science of commercial oxygen gas production. In certain embodiments of the present invention, where hydrogen sulfide is the source of hydrogen, sulfur or sulfuric acid can be a chemical co-product of the production of molecular hydrogen. In certain embodiments of the present invention, where sulfuric acid is a co-product of hydrogen production, part of the sulfuric acid can be used in the biomass hydrolysis in the post-carbon fixation process steps. In certain embodiments of the present invention, excess sulfuric acid and / or sulfur that is produced (for example, in addition to what can be used in the carbon capture and conversion process of certain embodiments of the present invention) can be processed in a suitable form for commercialization through the process steps known in the art and science of commercial production of sulfuric acid and / or sulfur. Process heat can also be generated in the production of hydrogen from hydrogen sulphide. In certain embodiments of the present invention, the heat from the hydrogen production process is recovered and used elsewhere in the carbon capture and conversion process of certain embodiments of the present invention to improve overall energy efficiency. A chemical and / or thermal and / or electrical co-product can accompany the generation of molecular hydrogen for use as an electron donor in certain embodiments of the present invention. Chemical and / or thermal and / or electrical by-products of molecular hydrogen generation can be used to extend to another possible location in the process of capturing and converting carbon of certain embodiments of the present invention, for example, to improve efficiency. In certain embodiments, additional chemical by-products (for example, in addition to what can be used in the carbon capture and conversion process of certain embodiments of the present invention) can be prepared for commercialization to generate an additional stream of yield. The co-product of excess heat or electrical energy in the production of molecular hydrogen (for example, in addition to what can be used internally in the process) can be delivered for commercialization, for example, for use in another chemical and / or biological process through means known in the art and science of heat exchange and transfer and electrical generation and transmission, including, but not limited to, converting process heat into electrical power into a commercially available form.
[0052] Certain embodiments of the present invention use electrochemical energy stored in valence electrons in solid state or conduction in an electrode or capacitor or related devices, alone or in combination with chemical electron donors and / or electron mediators to provide the equivalents of reduction of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms for carbon fixation reactions through direct exposure of said electrode materials to the microbial culture environment and / or immersion of said electrode materials in the microbial culture medium.
[0053] A characteristic of certain modalities of the present invention concerns the production or recycling of electron donors generated from mineralogical origin that can also be used by certain oxide-hydrogen microbes as a source of reduction equivalents in addition to, or in, the instead of hydrogen, including, but not limited to, electron donors generated from materials containing reduced S and Fe. Therefore, the present invention, in certain embodiments, may allow the use of a largely unused energy source - inorganic geochemical energy.
[0054] The electron donors used in certain embodiments of the present invention can be refined from natural mineralogical sources, which include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: elemental Fe0; siderite (FeCO3); magnetite (Fe3O4); pyrite or marcassite (FeS2), pyrrotite (Fe (1-x) S (x = 0 to 0.2)), pentlandite (Fe, Ni) 9S8, violarite (Ni2FeS4), bravoite (Ni, Fe) S2, arsenopyrite ( FeAsS), or other iron sulphides; enhance (AsS); auripigmento (As2S3); cobaltite (CoAsS); rhodochrosite (MnCO3); chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), bornite (Cu5FeS4), covelite (CuS), tetrahedrite (Cu8Sb2S7), enargite (Cu3AsS4), tenantite (Cu12As4.S13), calcocyte (Cu2S), or other copper sulfides; sphalerite (ZnS), marmatite (ZnS), or other zinc sulfides; galena (PbS), geochronite (Pb5 (Sb, As2) S8), or other lead sulphides; argentite or acantite (Ag2S); molybdenites (MoS2); millerite (NiS), polydimite (Ni3S4) or other nickel sulfides; antimonite (Sb2S3); Ga2S3; CuSe; cooperite (PtS); laurite (RuS2); bragite (Pt, Pd, Ni) S; FeCl2.
[0055] The generation of electron donor from natural mineralogical sources includes a pre-processing step in certain modalities of the present invention that can include, but without limitation, crushing, crushing or grinding iron ore to increase the surface area to leach with equipment, such as a ball mill, and moisten the iron ore to make a slurry. In these embodiments of the present invention, in which electron donors are generated from natural mineral sources, it can be advantageous if the particle size is controlled so that the sulfide and / or other reducing agents present in the ore can be concentrated by known methods in the art, including, but not limited to: flotation methods, such as air flotation or foam flotation using flotation columns or mechanical flotation cells; gravity separation; magnetic separation; separation of heavy medium; selective agglomeration; water separation; or fractional distillation. After the production of crushed ore or slurry, the particulate matter in the leaching water or concentrate can be separated by filtration (for example, vacuum filtration), settlement, or other well-known solid / liquid separation techniques, prior to introduction of the solution containing the electron donor in the chemoautotrophic culture environment. In addition, anything toxic to chemoautotrophs that is leached from iron ore can be removed prior to exposure of chemoautotrophs to leaching water. The solid that remains after processing the iron ore can be concentrated with a filter press, discarded, retained for further processing, or marketed, depending on the iron ore used in that particular embodiment of the invention.
[0056] Electron donors in certain embodiments of the present invention can also be refined from polluting or waste products, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: process gas; residual gas; improved oil recovery vent gas; biogas; acid mine drainage; leachate from landfill; landfill gas; geothermal gas; sludge or geothermal brine; metallic contaminants; denim; evictions; sulfides; disulfides; mercaptans including, but not limited to, methyl and dimethyl mercaptane, ethyl mercaptane; carbonyl sulfide; carbon disulfide; alkanesulfonates; dialkyl sulfides; thiosulfate; thiofurans; thiocyanates; isothiocyanates; thiourea; thiols; thiophenols; thioethers; thiophene; dibenzothiophene; tetrathionate; dithionite; thionate; dialkyl disulfides; sulfones; sulfoxides; sulfolans; sulfonic acid; dimethylsulfoniopropionate; sulfonic esters; hydrogen sulphide; sulfate esters; organic sulfur; sulfur dioxide and all other sour gases.
[0057] In addition to mining sources, electron donors are produced or recycled in certain modalities of the present invention through chemical reactions with hydrocarbons that may be of fossil origin, but which are used in chemical reactions producing low carbon dioxide gas emissions or null. These reactions include thermochemical and electrochemical processes. Such chemical reactions that are used in these embodiments of the present invention include, but are not limited to: the thermochemical reduction of the sulfate or TSR reaction and the Muller-Kuhne reaction; reactions similar to methane reform using metal oxides in place of water, such as, but not limited to, iron oxide, calcium oxide, or magnesium oxide through which hydrocarbon is reacted to form solid carbonate with little or no gas emissions of carbon dioxide along with the hydrogen electron donor product.
[0058] Examples of reactions between metal oxides and hydrocarbons to produce an electron donating product of hydrogen and carbonates include, but are not limited to:
and / or

[0059] In certain embodiments, the electron donors generated are oxidized in the chemosynthetic reaction stage or stages by electron receptors that include, but are not limited to, carbon dioxide, oxygen and / or one or more of the following: ferric iron or other transition metal ions, nitrates, nitrides, sulfates or holes in the valence layer or conduction in solid-state electrode materials.
[0060] The position of the chemosynthetic and / or oxy-hydrogen reaction step or steps in the general process flow of certain modalities of the present invention is illustrated in Figure 1 by Box 4 marked "Bioreactor -Microbials of Knallgas".
[0061] At each step in the process in which chemosynthetic and / or oxy-hydrogen reactions occur, one or more types of electron donor and one or more types of electron receptor can be pumped or, if not, added to the reaction vessel either as a bolus addition, or periodically, or continuously to the nutrient medium that contains oxy-hydrogen microorganisms. The chemosynthetic reaction conducted by transferring electrons from the electron donor to the electron receiver can fix inorganic carbon dioxide in organic compounds and biomass.
[0062] In certain embodiments of the present invention, electron mediators can be included in the nutrient medium to facilitate the delivery of reduction equivalents from electron donors to oxy-hydrogen organisms in the presence of electron and inorganic carbon receptors for kinetically accentuate the chemosynthetic reaction step. This aspect of the present invention can be used to enhance the transfer of reducing electrons to oxide-hydrogen microbes from poorly soluble electron donors, such as, but not limited to, H2 gas or electrons in solid-state electrode materials with use of electron mediators known in the technique of electrical stimulation of microbial metabolism including, but not limited to, anthroquinone-2,6-disulfonate (AQDS), cobalt sepulcrate, cytochromes, shape, humic substances, iron, methyl-viologene, NAD + / NADH , neutral red (NR), phenazines, and quinones.
[0063] The delivery of reduction equivalents from electron donors to oxy-hydrogen microorganisms for the chemosynthetic reaction or reactions can be enhanced kinetically and / or thermodynamically in certain modalities through means including, but not limited to: the introduction of hydrogen storage materials in the microbial culture environment that can duplicate as a solid support medium for microbial growth - placing absorbed or adsorbed hydrogen electron donors in close proximity to hydrogen oxidizing chemoautotrophs and / or introducing electrode materials (e.g. graphite, porous graphite, activated carbon, carbon nanofibers, conductive polymers, steel, iron, copper, titanium, lead, tin, palladium, platinum, platinum-coated titanium, other platinum-coated metals, transition metals, transition metal alloys, transition metal sulphides, oxides, calcides, halides, hydroxides, hydroxides oxides, phosphates, sulfates, and / or carbonates) that can duplicate as a solid growth support medium and a source of electron donors or receptors directly in the chemoautotrophic culture environment - placing solid-state electrons in close proximity to microbes. Some of such embodiments of the present invention may be useful for transferring reduction equivalents from poorly soluble electron donors, such as, but not limited to, H2 gas or electrons in solid-state electrode materials, to the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms.
[0064] The culture broth used in the chemosynthetic steps of certain modalities of the present invention can be an aqueous solution containing minerals, salts, vitamins, cofactors, buffers and other suitable components necessary for microbial growth, known to those skilled in the art [ Bailey and Ollis, Biochemical Engineering Fundamentals, 2nd edition; pages 383 to 384 and 620 to 622; McGraw-Hill: New York (1986)]. These nutrients can be chosen to maximize carbon fixation and promote carbon flow through enzymatic pathways that lead to the desired organic compounds. Alternative growth environments, such as those used in solid or non-aqueous fermentation techniques can be used in certain modalities. In certain modalities that use an aqueous culture, broth, salt water, sea water and / or water from other natural bodies of water, or other sources of non-potable water can be used when tolerated by the microorganisms of oxy-hydrogen.
[0065] Biochemical pathways can be controlled and optimized in certain modalities of the present invention for the production of chemicals (for example, targeted organic compounds) and / or biomass by maintaining specific growth conditions (for example, levels of nitrogen, oxygen , phosphorous, sulfur, residual micronutrients, such as inorganic ions, and, if present, any regulatory molecules that may not generally be considered as a source of nutrient or energy). Depending on the modality of the invention, the broth can be maintained in aerobic, microaerobic, anoxic, anaerobic, or optional conditions. An optional environment is considered to be one that has upper aerobic layers and lower anaerobic layers caused by stratification of the water column.
[0066] The oxygen level is controlled in certain embodiments of the invention. The oxygen level can be controlled, for example, to improve the production of organic compounds targeted by the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms through carbon fixation. One objective of controlling oxygen levels, in certain modalities, is to control (for example, optimize) the intracellular concentration of Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) by reducing cellular oxygen and producing ATP by oxidative phosphorylation. In some such embodiments, it may be desirable, when controlling the ATP concentration, to simultaneously maintain the environment sufficiently reducing so that the intracellular ratio of NADH (or NADPH) to NAD (or NADP) remains relatively high. In some embodiments, ATP levels are increased and / or optimized in oxy-hydrogen microorganisms by means including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: cellular oxygen reduction and / or another electron receptor of sufficient oxidation strength to the production of ATP through oxidative phosphorylation; the direct introduction of ATP into the culture medium; and / or the direct introduction of chemical ATP analogs into the culture medium.
[0067] The reduction of oxygen by hydrogen in the oxy-hydrogen reaction is, in general, linked enzymatically to the production of ATP through oxidative phosphorylation in oxy-hydrogen microorganisms. The oxy-hydrogen reaction can act as a proxy for the light reaction in photosynthesis by generating both NADPH and ATP. In general, in oxy-hydrogen microorganisms, hydrogenase catalyzes the reduction of NAD to NADH by hydrogen (or, alternatively, in some photosynthetic organisms that are capable of carrying out the oxy-hydrogen reaction, a hydrogenase catalyzes the reduction of ferrodoxin by H2, which in turn reduces NADP to NADPH) [Chen, Gibbs, Plant Physiol. (1992) 100, 1,361 to 1,365]. NADH and / or NADPH can then be used as reducing agents for anabolic reactions, or to generate ATP by reducing oxygen through oxidative phosphorylation [Bongers, J. Bacteriology, (October 1970) 145 to 151]. Therefore, in place of the following light-dependent photosynthetic reaction:
an oxide-hydrogen reaction of
it can occur in dark conditions (for example, in the substantial absence of visible electromagnetic radiation), with hydrogen acting in place of photons, given the production of 2ATP per H2 consumed [Bongers, J. Bacteriology, (October 1970) 145 to 151 ].
[0068] The maintenance of high intracellular concentrations of ATP, as well as NADH and / or NADPH is targeted in certain modalities of the present invention to promote carbon fixation and cause anabolic activation pathways and / or solvetogenic pathways that consume reduction and or consume ATP, and / or that reduce the net yield of chemosynthetic carbon fixing ATP. Such biochemical pathways include, but are not limited to, the following: fatty acid synthesis; synthesis of mevalonate pathway and terpenoid synthesis; butanol pathway and 1-butanol synthesis; acetolactate / alpha-ketovalerate pathway and synthesis of 2-butanol; and the ethanol route. A preferred oxygen level can be determined, in some embodiments of the present invention: a very low oxygen level can reduce intracellular ATP in oxy-hydrogen microorganisms below a desired level, while a very high oxygen level can decrease the ratio of NADH (or NADPH) to NAD (or NADP) below a desired level.
[0069] The application of the hydrogen oxide reaction for the production of ATP and NADH and / or NADPH used for the carbon fixation and synthesis of organic compounds in certain modalities of the present invention can provide advantages over alternative approaches with the use , for example, from biochemical anaerobic pathways for carbon fixation to such as Wood-Ljungdahl or methanogenic pathways. Carbon fixation through the Wood-Ljungdahl or methanogenic pathways generally produces organic compounds C1 or C2 and it can be difficult to produce compounds longer than C4 through these pathways.
[0070] The Wood-Ljungdahl pathway can produce acetic acid, ethanol, butyric acid, and butanol in nature, but butyric acid and butanol are, in general, by-products of H2 and CO2 gas fermentation, and the longer chain lengths long ones that C4 do not appear, typically [Lynd, Zeikus, J. of Bacteriology (1983) 1,415 to 1,423; Eichler, Schink, Archives of Microbiology (1984) 140, 147 to 152]. The acetogenic pathways for acetic acid and butyric acid produce liquid ATP, while the solventogenic pathways for ethanol and butanol do not [Papoutsakis, Biotechnology & Bioengineering (1984) 26, 174 to 187; Heise, Muller, Gottschalk, J. de Bacteriology (1989) 5,473 to 5,478; Lee, Park, Jang, Nielsen, Kim, Jung, Biotechnology & Bioengineering (2008) 101, 2, 209 to 228]. Since ATP is necessary for cell maintenance, a certain amount of relatively undesirable non-biofuel co-product (ie organic acids) from carbon-fixing acetogens via the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway will generally be present, which constitutes a waste reduction and carbon equivalents.
[0071] The production of hydrocarbons with a chain length longer than C4 is most commonly achieved biologically through fatty acid biosynthesis [Fischer, Klein-Marcuschamer, Stephanolpoulos, Metabolic Engineering (2008) 10, 295 to 304]. Unlike the solventogenic pathways that leave the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway, fatty acid synthesis involves the consumption of liquid ATP. For example, the following yields the net reaction for the synthesis of palmitic acid (C16), in this example starting from Acetyl-CoA:

[0072] One difficulty with the use of anaerobic pathways, such as Methanogenesis or Wood-Ljungdahl for the production of ATP to cause fatty acid synthesis is that the ATP produced by H2 consumed is relatively low: an ATP by 4H2 for the production of methane [Thauer, RK, Kaster, AK, Seedorf, H., Buckel, W. & Hedderich, R. Methanogenic archaea: ecologically relevant differences in energy conservation. Nat Rev Microbiol 6, 579 to 591, doi: nrmicro1931 [ii]] or acetic acid and an ATP for 10H2 for the production of butyric acid [Papoutsakis, Biotechnology & Bioengineering (1984) 26, 174-187; Heise, Muller, Gottschalk, J. of Bacteriology (1989) 5,473 to 5,478; Lee, Park, Jang, Nielsen, Kim, Jung, Biotechnology & Bioengineering (2008) 101, 2, 209 to 228]. In contrast, for the oxy-hydrogen reaction, oxy-hydrogen hydrogenotrophic microorganisms can produce up to two ATP per H2 consumed [Bongers, J. Bacteriology, (October 1970) 145 to 151]. In other words, oxy-hydrogen microorganisms can produce up to eight times more ATP per H2 consumed than methanogenic or acetogenic microorganisms. In addition, the pathway for the production of ATP through the oxy-hydrogen reaction produces water, which can be readily incorporated into the process stream instead of the relatively undesired products of acetic acid or butyric acid of acidogenesis that can damage the system's pH may increase to concentrations toxic to organisms.
[0073] The highest energy density fuel that can be achieved in practice naturally through the Wood-Ljungdahl route with inorganic carbon input is, in general, ethanol at 30 MJ / kg, although butanol at 36.1 MJ / kg may be possible. The production of diesel fuels (46.2 MJ / kg) or JP-8 aviation fuel (43.15 MJ / kg) can, in general, be difficult and is, in general, less efficient with the use of anaerobic routes, like Wood-Ljungdahl, due to the increased amount of H2 that needs to be consumed in strictly anaerobic ways by ATP produced, which is necessary for the synthesis of fatty acid. However, these liquid fuels compatible with high-density infrastructure can be readily produced through grease synthesis pathways conducted by ATP and NADH or NADPH generated by the oxide-hydrogen reaction.
[0074] The biomass lipid content and efficiency of the lipid biosynthetic pathway are two factors that can affect the general effectiveness of certain modalities of the present invention to convert CO2 and other C1 compounds into longer chain compounds (for example, compatible fuels with infrastructure). The lipid content of biomass can determine the proportion of carbon and reduce equivalents directed to the synthesis of fuel products, contrary to other components of biomass. The lipid content can determine the amount of energy input from the reduction equivalents that can be captured in the final fuel product. Likewise, the efficacy of the metabolic pathway can determine the amount of reduction equivalents that have to be consumed in converting CO2 and hydrogen to lipid along the lipid biosynthetic pathway. Many oxy-hydrogen microorganisms include species rich in lipid content and that contain efficient pathways from H2 and CO2 to lipid. Certain embodiments of the present invention use species with a high lipid content such as, but not limited to, Rhodococcus opacus which can have a lipid content of more than 70% [Gouda, MK, Omar, SH, Chekroud, ZA & Nour Eldin, HM Bioremediation of kerosene I: A case study in liquid media. Chemosphere 69, 1,807 to 1,814, doi: S0045- 6535 (07) 00738-2; Waltermann, M., Luftmann, H., Baumeister, D., Kalscheuer, R. & Steinbuchel, A. Rhodococcus opacus strain PD630 as a new source of high-value single-cell oil Isolation and characterization of triacylglycerols and other storage lipids. Microbiology 146 (Pt 5), 1,143 to 1,149 (2000).] And / or species that use high-efficiency metabolic pathways, such as, but not limited to, the reverse tricarboxylic acid cycle [ie, reverse citric acid cycle] for fix carbon [Miura, A., Kameya, M., Arai, H., Ishii, M. & Igarashi, Y. A soluble NADH-dependent fumarate reductase in the reductive tricarboxylic acid cycle of Hydrogenobacter thermophilus TK-6. J Bacteriol 190, 7,170 to 7,177, doi: JB.00747-08 [ii] 10.1128 / JB.00747-08 (2008) .; Shively, J. M., van Keulen, G. & Meijer, W. G. Something from almost nothing: carbon dioxide fixation in chemoautotrophs. Annu Rev Microbiol 52, 191 to 230, doi: 10.1146 / annurev.micro.52.1.191 (1998).]. In terms of energy efficiency, the reverse tricarboxylic acid pathway can be a relatively favorable pathway. The synthesis of palmitic acid from H2 and CO2 is, in general, about 15% more efficient in terms of reduction equivalents consumed than synthesis of palmitic acid in acetogenes, due to the increased ATP output by the reduction equivalent consumed in the reaction of hydrogen-oxide by micro-organisms of hydrogen-oxide.
[0075] Sources of inorganic carbon used in the chemosynthetic reaction process steps of certain embodiments of the present invention include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: a gas stream containing carbon dioxide that may be pure or a mixture; Liquefied CO2; dry ice; dissolved carbon dioxide, carbonate ion, or bicarbonate ion in solutions including aqueous solutions, such as sea water; inorganic carbon in a solid form, such as carbonate or mineral bicarbonates. Carbon dioxide and / or other forms of inorganic carbon can be introduced to the nutrient medium contained in reaction vessels either as a bolus addition, periodically, or continuously in the steps in the process in which carbon fixation occurs. Organic compounds that contain only one carbon atom that can be used in the synthetic reaction process steps of certain embodiments of the present invention include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: carbon monoxide, methane, methanol, formate, formic acid, and / or mixtures containing C1 chemicals including, but not limited to, various synthesis gas compositions generated from various steam-reformed or carbonated fixed carbon raw materials.
[0076] In certain embodiments, organic compounds that contain only one carbon atom and / or electron donors are generated through gasification and / or pyrolysis of biomass and / or other organic matter (for example, biomass and / or other organic matter from residual or low-value sources), and supplied as a synthesis gas to the culture of the oxy-hydrogen microorganism, in which the ratio of hydrogen to carbon monoxide in the synthesis gas may or may not be adjusted by means such as the displacement reaction of water gas, before the synthesis gas is delivered to the microbial culture. In certain embodiments, organic compounds that contain only one carbon atom and / or electron donors are generated by steam reforming methane from methane or natural gas (for example, filamented natural gas, or natural gas that would be, otherwise, set on fire or released into the atmosphere), or biogas, or landfill gas, and provided as a synthesis gas to the culture of the oxide-hydrogen microorganism, where the ratio of hydrogen to carbon monoxide in the synthesis gas it may or may not be adjusted by means such as the water gas displacement reaction, prior to the synthesis gas being delivered to the microbial culture.
[0077] In certain embodiments of the present invention, the carbon dioxide containing flue gases is captured from the chimney at a temperature, pressure, and gas composition characteristic of the untreated exhaust, and directed with minimal modification to the reaction vessels where carbon fixation occurs. In some modalities in which impurities harmful to chemoautotrophic organisms are not present in the flue gas, the modification of the flue gas by entering the reaction vessels may be limited to the compression required to pump the gas through the reactor system and / or the heat exchange required to lower the gas temperature to one suitable for microorganisms.
[0078] Oxy-hydrogen microorganisms have, in general, an advantage over strictly anaerobic acetogenic or methanogenic microorganisms for carbon capture applications due to the superior oxygen tolerance of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms. Since industrial combustion gas is an intended source of CO2 for certain embodiments of the present invention, the relatively high oxygen tolerance of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms, compared to mandatory anaerobic methanogenes or acetogens, may allow the O2 content 2 to 6% found in typical flue gas is tolerated.
[0079] In modalities in which the carbon dioxide that carries flue gas is transported through a system to dissolve the carbon dioxide in solution (as is well known in the carbon capture technique), the purified flue gas, ( which, in general, primarily includes inert gases, such as nitrogen), can be released into the atmosphere.
[0080] Gases other than carbon dioxide that are dissolved in solution and fed to the culture broth or dissolved directly in the culture broth in certain embodiments of the present invention include gaseous electron donors (for example, hydrogen gas), but in certain embodiments of the present invention may include other electron donors, such as, but not limited to, carbon monoxide and other constituents of synthesis gas, hydrogen sulfide, and / or other sour gases. A controlled amount of oxygen can also be maintained in the culture broth of some embodiments of the present invention, and, in certain embodiments, oxygen will be actively dissolved in solution fed to the culture broth and / or directly dissolved in the culture broth.
[0081] The dissolution of oxygen, carbon dioxide, and / or electron donor gases such as, but not limited to, hydrogen and / or carbon monoxide in solution can be achieved in some embodiments of the present invention with the use of a compressor system , flow meters, and / or flow valves known to an individual skilled in the microbial culture technique on a bioreactor scale, which can be fed to one or more of the following commonly used systems for pumping gas into the solution: diffusion equipment ; diffusers including, but not limited to, dome, tubular, disc, or threaded geometries; rough or fine bubble beaters; and / or venturi equipment. In certain embodiments of the present invention, surface aeration can also be performed using paddle aerators and the like. In certain embodiments of the present invention, the gas dissolution is increased by mechanical mixing with an impeller and / or turbine. In some embodiments, hydraulic shear devices can be used to reduce the bubble size.
[0082] In certain embodiments of the present invention that require active pumping of air or oxygen into the culture broth to maintain acceptable oxygenation levels (eg, optimal), oxygen bubbles are injected into the broth at a desirable diameter (eg. optimal) for mixing and transferring oxygen. It was found that it is 2 mm for fences modalities [Environment Research Journal May / June 1999 pages 307 to 315]. in certain aerobic embodiments of the present invention, an oxygen bubble shear process is used to achieve that bubble diameter, as described in U.S. Patent No. 7,332,077. In some embodiments, the bubbles have an average diameter of no more than 7.5 mm and aggregative fluidization is avoided.
[0083] In certain embodiments of the present invention that use hydrogen as an electron donor, the hydrogen gas is fed to the chemoautotrophic culture vessel by bubbling it through the culture medium and / or by diffusing it through a membrane that enters contact with the culture medium and is impermeable to the culture medium. The latter method is considered safer for many modalities, and may be preferable, since the hydrogen that accumulates in the gas phase can create explosive conditions (the range of explosive hydrogen concentrations in the air is 4 to 74.5% and can be avoided in certain embodiments of the present invention). In some embodiments, the membrane is coated with a biofilm from the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms so that the hydrogen has to diffuse through the microorganism after passing through the membrane.
[0084] Additional chemical substances required or useful for the maintenance and growth of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms, as known in the art, can be added to the culture broth of certain modalities of the present invention. These chemicals may include, but are not limited to: nitrogen sources such as ammonia, ammonium (eg, ammonium chloride (NH4Cl), ammonium sulfate ((NH4) 2SO4)), nitrate (eg potassium nitrate (KNO3) ), urea or a source of organic nitrogen; phosphate (for example, disodium phosphate (Na2HPO4), potassium phosphate (KH2PO4), phosphoric acid (H3PO4), potassium dithiophosphate (K3PS2O2), potassium orthophosphate (K3PO4), dipotassium phosphate (K2HPO4); sulfate; Yeast extract; chelated iron; potassium (for example potassium phosphate (KH2PO4), potassium nitrate (KNO3), potassium iodide (KI), potassium bromide (KBr)); and other inorganic salts, minerals, and trace nutrients (for example, sodium chloride (NaCl), magnesium sulfate (MgSO4 7H2O) or magnesium chloride (MgCl2), calcium chloride (CaCl2) or calcium carbonate (CaCO3) , manganese sulfate (MnSO4 7H2O) or manganese chloride (MnCl2), ferric chloride (FeCl3), ferrous sulfate (FeSO4 7H2O) or ferrous chloride (FeCl2 4H2O), sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) or sodium carbonate (Na2CO3), zinc sulfate (ZnSO4) or zinc chloride (ZnCl2), ammonium molybdate (NH4MoO4) or sodium molybdate (Na2MoO4 2H2O), copper sulfate (CuSO4) or copper chloride (CuCl2 2H2O), cobalt chloride (CoCl2 6H2O) ), aluminum chloride (AlCl3.6H2O), lithium chloride (LiCl), boric acid (H3BO3), nickel chloride (NiCl2 6H2O), tin chloride (SnCl2 H2O), barium chloride (BaCl2 2H2O), selenate copper (CuSeO4 5H2O) or sodium selenite (Na2SeO3), sodium metacanadate (NaVO3), chromium salts). In certain embodiments, the mineral salt medium (MSM) formulated by Schlegel et al can be used [Thermophilic bacteria, Jakob Kristjansson, Chapter 5, Section III, CRC Press, (1992)].
[0085] In certain modalities, the concentrations of nutrient chemical substances (for example, electron donors and recipients) are maintained at favorable levels (for example, as close as possible to their respective optimum levels) for carbon absorption and fixation improved (for example, maximum) and / or production of organic compounds, which varies depending on the oxy-hydrogen species used, but is known or determinable without undue experimentation on an individual of common skill in the technique of cultivating oxy-hydrogen microorganisms.
[0086] Along with nutrient levels, levels of waste products, pH, temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide, gas and liquid flow rates, agitation rate, and pressure in the microbial culture environment are controlled in certain embodiments of the present invention. Operating parameters that affect carbon fixation can be monitored with sensors (for example, using a dissolved oxygen probe and / or an oxidation reduction probe to measure donor / electron receiver concentrations) and can be controlled either manually or automatically based on feedback from sectors through the use of equipment including, but not limited to, actuating valves, pumps, and agitators. The temperature of the inlet broth, as well as inlet gases, can be regulated by means such as, but not limited to, heat exchangers.
[0087] The dissolution of gases and nutrients necessary to maintain the oxide-hydrogen culture and promote carbon fixation, as well as the removal of inhibitory residual products, can be improved by stirring the culture broth. Oxy-hydrogen microorganisms can perform carbon fixation reactions by the volume of the reaction vessel, which provides an advantage over other approaches including those using photosynthetic organisms, which have limited surface area due to the light requirements of photosynthesis. The use of agitation can further enhance this advantage by distributing microorganisms, nutrients, optimal growth environment, and / or CO2 as widely and evenly as possible through the reactor volume so that production is enhanced (for example, the reactor volume in which carbon fixation reactions occur at an optimal rate is maximized).
[0088] The stirring of the culture broth in certain embodiments of the present invention can be carried out by equipment including, but not limited to: the recirculation of the broth from the bottom of the container to the top through a recirculation duct; diffusion with carbon dioxide, electron donating gas (eg H2), oxygen, and / or air; and / or a mechanical mixer, such as, but not limited to, an impeller (100 to 1,000 rpm) or turbine.
[0089] In certain embodiments of the present invention, the chemical environment, hydrogen oxide microorganisms, electron donors, electron receptors, oxygen, pH, and / or temperature levels are varied either spatially and / or temporarily across a series of bioreactors in fluid communication, so that a number of reactions of carbon fixation and / or biochemical pathways to organic compounds are carried out sequentially or in parallel.
[0090] The nutrient medium containing oxy-hydrogen microorganisms can be removed from the bioreactors in certain embodiments of the present invention partially or completely, periodically or continuously, and can be replaced with fresh cell-free medium, for example, to maintain the culture cell in an exponential growth phase, to maintain cell culture in a growth phase (exponential or stationary) with improved (for example, optimal) carbon fixation rates, to restore depleted nutrients in the growth medium, and / or remove residual inhibitor products.
[0091] The high growth rate obtainable by oxy-hydrogen species may allow them to be compatible with or exceed the highest rates of carbon fixation and / or biomass production by independent unit biomass that can be achieved by microbes photosynthetic. Consequently, in certain embodiments, excess biomass can be produced. The excess growth of cell mass can be removed from the system to produce a biomass product. In some embodiments, excess cell mass growth can be removed from the system to maintain a desirable (eg, optimal) microbial population and cell density in the microbial culture for high continuous carbon capture and fixation rates.
[0092] Another advantage of certain embodiments of the present invention concerns the vessels used to contain the carbon fixation reaction environment and the culture in the carbon capture and fixation process. Exemplary culture vessels that can be used in some embodiments of the present invention for the culture and growth of oxide-hydrogen microorganisms for the capture and fixation of carbon dioxide include those that are known to those of ordinary skill in the wide microbial culture technique scale. Such culture vessels, which may be of natural or artificial origin, include, but are not limited to: pneumatic reactors; biological purification columns; bioreactors; bubble columns; furnas; caves; cisterns; continuous agitator tank reactors; against current, upward flow, expanded bed reactors; digesters and, in particular, digestion systems, as known in the prior art of treating or biorepairing sewage and wastewater; filters, including, but not limited to, drip filters, rotating biological contact filters, rotating discs, soil filters; fluidized bed reactors; gas lift fermenters; immobilized cell reactors; lagoons; membrane biofilm reactors; microbial fuel cells; mine shafts; pachuca tanks; stuffed bed reactors; piston flow reactors; lakes; pools; quarries; reservoirs; static mixers; tanks; towers; leaky bed reactors; barrels; vertical rod bioreactors; and wells. The base of the vase, the sides, walls, lining and / or top can be made of one or more materials including, but not limited to, bitumen, cement, ceramics, clay, concrete, epoxy, fiberglass, glass, macadam, plastic , sand, sealant, soil, steel or other metals and their alloys, stone, asphalt, wood, and any combination thereof. In certain embodiments of the present invention, where the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms either require a corrosive growth environment and / or produce corrosive chemicals by the carbon fixation reaction, corrosion-resistant materials can be used to line the interior of the container that comes into contact with the growth medium.
[0093] Since oxy-hydrogen microorganisms do not require sunlight to fix CO2, they can be used in carbon capture and fixation processes that avoid many disadvantages that can be associated with photosynthesis-based carbon capture and conversion technologies . For example, maintaining chemosynthesis does not require shallow, wide lakes, or bioreactors with high surface area to volume ratios and special features, such as solar collectors or transparent materials. A technology, such as certain modalities of the present invention that use oxy-hydrogen microbes, does not have the daytime, geographic, meteorological or seasonal restrictions typically associated with photosynthesis-based systems.
[0094] Certain embodiments of the present invention minimize material costs by using chemosynthetic vessel geometries that have a surface area to low volume ratio, such as, but not limited to, cubic, cylindrical shapes with medium aspect ratio, ellipsoid shapes or “ "egg-shaped", hemispherical, or spherical, unless material costs are replaced by other design considerations (for example, ecological footprint size). The ability to use compact reactor geometries may arise from the absence of a light requirement for chemosynthetic reactions, in contrast to photosynthetic technologies in which the surface area to volume ratio has to be high to provide sufficient light exposure.
[0095] The lack of dependence on the light of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms can also allow plant designs with a much smaller footprint than those traditionally associated with photosynthetic approaches. For example, in scenarios where the plant footprint needs to be minimized due to restricted availability, a vertical-stem bioreactor system can be used to capture chemosynthetic carbon. A long vertical rod type bioreactor is described, for example, in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,279,754, 5,645,726, 5,650,070 and 7,332,077.
[0096] Unless replaced by other considerations, certain embodiments of the present invention minimize vessel surfaces through which large losses of water, nutrients, and / or heat occur, and / or the introduction of invasive predators into the reactor. The ability to minimize such surfaces may arise from the lack of light requirements for chemosynthesis. Photosynthesis-based technologies are, in general, not able to minimize such surfaces, since the surfaces through which high losses of water, nutrients, and / or heat occur, as well as losses due to predation, are, in general, the same surfaces through which the light energy needed for photosynthesis is transmitted.
[0097] The culture vessels of the present invention may, in some embodiments, use reactor designs known to those of ordinary skill in the large-scale microbial culture technique to maintain an aerobic, microaerobic, anoxic, anaerobic, or optional environment, depending on embodiment of the present invention. For example, similar to the design of many sewage treatment facilities, in certain embodiments of the present invention, the tanks are arranged in a sequence, with serial front fluid communication, in which certain tanks are maintained in aerobic conditions and others are maintained in anaerobic conditions, to perform multiple chemosynthetic processing steps and, in certain modalities, heterotrophic in the residual carbon dioxide stream.
[0098] In certain embodiments of the present invention, hydrogen oxide microorganisms are immobilized in their growth environment. Immobilization of microorganisms can be performed using any means known in the microbial culture technique to support colonization by microorganisms including, but not limited to, cultivating the microorganisms in a matrix, mesh, or membrane made from any one of a wide range of natural and synthetic materials and polymers, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: glass wool, clay, concrete, wood fiber, inorganic oxides such as ZrO2, Sb2O3, or Al2O3, the foam being polymeric polysulfone or open pore polyurethane has a high specific surface area. Microorganisms in certain embodiments of the present invention can also be grown on the surfaces of unfixed objects distributed by the growth vessel, as are known in the microbial culture technique which includes, but is not limited to, one or more of the following: spheres; sand; silicates; sepiolite; glass; ceramics; small diameter plastic discs, spheres, tubes, particles, or other shapes known in the art; crushed coconut shells; ground corn cob; activated charcoal; granulated coal; ground coal; sponge balls; suspended medium; small diameter polyethylene rubber (elastomeric) cube parts; strands hanging from porous fabric, Berl saddles, Raschig rings. The materials used in the microbial support medium may include hydrogen storage and / or electrode materials to enhance the transfer of reduction equivalents to oxide-hydrogen microorganisms. Sweatable electrode materials include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: graphite, activated carbon, carbon nanofibers, conductive polymers, steel, iron, copper, titanium, lead, tin, palladium, platinum, metals transition metals, transition metal alloys, transition metal sulfides, oxides, chalcogenides, halides, hydroxides, oxide hydroxides, phosphates, sulphates or carbonates. Hydrogen storage materials that can be used in this application include, but are not limited to, titanium, graphite, activated carbon, carbon nanofibers, iron, copper, lead, tin, metal hydrides, including, but not limited to, TiFeH2, TiH2, VH2, ZrH2, NiH, NbH2, PdH, and polymers known in the hydrogen storage technique, including, but not limited to, Metal-Organic Structures (MOF), and nanoporous polymeric materials. In certain embodiments, the hydrogen storage material does not react strongly with water or has a strong or rapid effect on the pH of the culture medium.
[0099] Inoculation of the oxy-hydrogen culture in the culture vessel can be carried out by methods including, but not limited to, transferring culture from an existing oxy-hydrogen culture that inhabits another carbon capture and fixation system of certain embodiments of the present invention and / or incubation from a seed stock created in an incubator. The seed stock of oxy-hydrogen strains can be transported and stored in forms including, but not limited to, a powder, a liquid, a frozen form, or a freeze-dried form, as well as any other suitable form, which can be readily recognized by an individual skilled in the art. In certain modalities, in which a culture is established in a very large reactor, the growth and establishment of cultures can be carried out in containers of immediate scale progressively larger prior to inoculation of the vessel in full scale.
[00100] The position of the process step or steps for the separation of cell mass from the process stream in the general process flow of certain modalities of the present invention is illustrated in Figure 1 by Box 5, marked “Cell Separation” .
[00101] The separation of cell mass from the liquid suspension can be carried out by methods known in the microbial culture technique [Examples of harvesting techniques are given in International Patent Application No. WO08 / 00558, published on January 8, 1998; U.S. Patent No. 5,807,722; U.S. Patent No. 5,593,886 and U.S. Patent No. 5,821,111.] Including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: centrifugation; flocculation; fluctuation; filtration with the use of a hollow, spiral-wound membrane fiber or ceramic filter system; vacuum filtration; tangential flow filtration; whitening; settlement; hydrocyclone. In certain embodiments in which the cell mass is immobilized in a matrix, it can be harvested by methods including, but not limited to, sedimentation by gravity or filtration, and separated from the growth substrate by liquid shear forces.
[00102] In certain embodiments of the present invention, if an excess cell mass has been removed from the culture, it can be recycled back to the cell culture, as indicated by the process arrow marked "Recycled Cell Mass" in Figure 1, along with fresh broth so that sufficient biomass is retained in the chemosynthetic reaction step or steps. This can allow for continued improved (for example, optimal) autotrophic fixation and the production of organic compounds. The cell mass recovered by the harvesting system can be recycled back to the culture vessel, for example, with the use of a pneumatic pump or geyser. In certain embodiments, the cell mass recycled back into the culture vessel is not exposed to flocculating agents, unless those agents are non-toxic to microorganisms.
[00103] In certain embodiments of the present invention, the microbial culture and the carbon fixation reaction are maintained as use of continuous influx and the removal of nutrient and / or biomass medium, in a stable state in which the cell population and parameters Environmental factors (eg cell density, chemical concentrations) are targeted at a constant (eg optimal) level over time. Cell densities can be monitored in certain embodiments of the present invention by direct sampling, by a correlation of optical density to cell density, and / or with a particle size analyzer. The biomass and hydraulic retention times can be decoupled in order to allow independent control of both juice and cell densities. Dilution rates can be kept high enough so that hydraulic retention is relatively low compared to biomass retention time, resulting in a highly refilled broth for cell growth. Dilution rates can be configured to an optimal trade-off between culture broth refill, and increased process costs due to pumping, increased inputs, and other demands that increase with dilution rates.
[00104] To assist in processing the biomass product into biofuels or other useful products, excess microbial cells in certain embodiments of the invention can be opened by disruption following the cell recycling step using, for example, methods including, but without limitation, spherical lamination, cavitation pressure, sonication, or mechanical shear.
[00105] The biomass harvested in some modalities can be dried in the process step or stages of Box 7, marked “Dryer” in the general process flow of certain modalities of the present invention illustrated in Figure 1.
[00106] The drying of the excess biomass can be carried out in certain modalities of the present invention with the use of technologies including, but not limited to, centrifugation, drum drying, evaporation, freeze drying, heating, spray drying, vacuum drying and / or vacuum filtration. Thermal residue from the industrial source of flue gas can be used to dry the biomass, in certain modalities. Furthermore, the chemosynthetic oxidation of electron donors is, in general, exothermic and, in general, produces residual heat. In certain embodiments of the present invention, residual heat can be used to dry the biomass.
[00107] In certain embodiments of the invention, biomass is further processed following drying to assist the production of biofuels or other useful chemicals by separating the content of lipid or other targeted biochemicals from microbial biomass. The lipids can be separated using non-polar solvents to extract lipids such as, but not limited to, hexane, cyclohexane, ethyl ether, alcohol (isopropanol, ethanol, etc.), tributyl phosphate, supercritical carbon dioxide, trioctylphosphine oxide, secondary and tertiary amines, or propane. Other useful biochemicals can be extracted using solvents including, but not limited to: chloroform, acetone, ethyl acetate, and tetrachlorethylene.
[00108] The lipid content extracted from biomass can be processed using methods known in the art and science of biomass refinement, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following - catalytic reform and cracking; decarboxylation; hydrotreatment; isomerization - to produce petroleum and petrochemical substitutions, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: jet fuel JP-8, diesel, gasoline, and other alkanes, olefins and aromatics. In some embodiments, the lipid content extracted from biomass can be converted to ester-based fuels, such as biodiesel (fatty acid methyl ester or fatty acid ethyl ester), through processes known in the biomass refinement technique and science, including, but not limited to, transesterification and esterification.
[00109] The leftover broth following the removal of cell mass can be pumped into a system for the removal of chemosynthesis chemicals and / or spent nutrients, which are recycled or recovered to the extent possible and / or discarded.
[00110] The position of the process step or steps for the recovery of chemicals from the process stream in the general process flow of certain modalities of the present invention is illustrated in Figure 1 by Box 8, marked “Separation of chemical by-products ”.
[00111] The recovery and / or recycling of chemosynthetic chemicals and / or spent nutrients from the aqueous broth solution can be performed in certain embodiments of the present invention with the use of equipment and techniques known in the process engineering technique, and targeted at towards chemicals of particular modalities of the present invention, including, but not limited to: solvent extraction; water extraction; distillation; fractional distillation; cementation; chemical precipitation; absorption of alkaline solution; absorption or adsorption on activated carbon, ion exchange resin or molecular sieve; modification of the solution pH and / or oxidation-reduction potential, evaporators, fractional crystallizers, solid / liquid separators, nanofiltration, and all combinations thereof.
[00112] In certain embodiments of the present invention, free fatty acids, lipids, or other medium or long-chain organic compounds suitable for refinement for biofuel products that have been produced through chemosynthesis can be recovered from the process stream in the step in Box 8 in Figure 1. These free organic molecules can be released into the process stream solution from the oxy-hydrogen microorganisms by means including, but not limited to, cellular excretion or cell secretion or lysis. In certain embodiments of the present invention, the recovered organic compounds are processed using methods known in the art and science of biomass refinement including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: catalytic reforming and cracking; decarboxylation; hydrotreatment; isomerization. Such processes can be used to produce oil and petrochemical substitutions, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: JP-8 jet fuel, diesel, gasoline, and other alkanes, olefins and aromatics. Recovered fatty acids can be converted to ester-based fuels, such as biodiesel (fatty acid methyl ester or fatty acid ethyl ester), through processes known in the biomass refinement technique and science, including, but not limited to, transesterification and esterification.
[00113] In some modalities, following the recovery of chemical products from the process stream, the removal of residual products is performed as indicated by Box 9, marked as “Residue removal” in Figure 1. The remaining broth can be returned to the vessel of culture along with water and / or replacement nutrients.
[00114] In certain embodiments of the present invention that involve the chemoautotrophic oxidation of electron donors extracted from an iron ore, a solution of oxidized metal cations can remain, following the steps of chemosynthetic reaction. A solution rich in dissolved metal cations can also result from a particularly dirty flue gas entering the process, such as from a coal-fired plant. In some such embodiments of the present invention, the process stream may be devoid of metal cations or methods including, but not limited to: cementation on residual iron, steel wool, copper or zinc dust; chemical precipitation, such as a sulfide or hydroxide precipitate; electroplating on a specific metal plate; absorption in ion exchange resin or activated carbon, modification of the solution pH and / or oxidation-reduction potential, solvent extraction. In certain embodiments of the present invention, recovered metals can be marketed for an additional yield stream.
[00115] In certain modalities, the chemical substances that are used in processes for the recovery of chemical products, the recycling of nutrients and water, and the removal of waste have low toxicity for humans, and, if exposed to the process stream that it is recycled back into the growth vessel, it has low toxicity to the hydrogen oxide microorganisms being used.
[00116] In certain embodiments of the present invention, the pH of the microbial culture is controlled. To address a decrease in pH, a neutralization step can be performed prior to recycling the broth back into the culture vessel to maintain the pH in an optimal range for microbial maintenance and growth. Neutralization of acid in the broth can be accomplished by adding bases including, but not limited to: limestone, lime, sodium hydroxide, ammonia, caustic potash, magnesium oxide, iron oxide. In certain embodiments, the base is produced from a carbon dioxide-free source, such as naturally occurring basic minerals, including, but not limited to, calcium oxide, magnesium oxide, iron oxide, iron ore, olivine containing a metallic oxide, serpentine containing a metallic oxide, ultramafic deposits containing metallic oxides, and basic underground saline aquifers. If limestone is used for neutralization, then carbon dioxide will, in general, be released, which can be directed back into the growth vessel for absorption by chemosynthesis and / or sequestered in some other way, instead of being released into the atmosphere. .
[00117] An additional feature of certain embodiments of the present invention relates to the uses of organic compounds and / or biomass produced through the chemosynthetic process step or steps of certain embodiments of the present invention. Uses of the organic compounds and / or biomass produced include, but are not limited to: the production of liquid fuels including, but not limited to, JP-8 jet fuel, diesel, gasoline, octane, biodiesel, butanol, ethanol, propanol, isopropanol, propane , alkanes, olefins, aromatics, fatty alcohols, fatty acid esters, alcohols; the production of organic chemicals, including, but not limited to, 1,3-propanediol, 1,3-butadiene, 1,4-butanediol, 3-hydroxypropionate, 7-ADCA / cephalosporin, ε-caprolactone, Y-valerolactone, acrylate , acrylic acid, adipic acid, ascorbate, aspartate, ascorbic acid, aspartic acid, caprolactam, carotenoids, citrate, citric acid, DHA, docetaxel, erythromycin, ethylene, gamma butyrolactone, glutamate, glutamic acid, HPA, hydroxybutyrate, isopentenol, isopentenol, isopentenol isoprenoids, itaconate, itaconic acid, lactate, lactic acid, lanosterol, levulinic acid, lycopene, lysine, malate, malonic acid, peptides, omega-3 DHA, omega fatty acids, paclitaxel, PHA, PHB, polyketides, polyols, propylene, pyrrolidones , serine, sorbitol, statins, steroids, succinate, terephthalate, terpenes, THF, rubber, wax esters, polymers, general purpose chemicals, industrial chemicals, specialty chemicals, paraffin substitutions, additives, supplements nutritional, nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, pharmaceutical intermediates, personal care products; as raw material and / or raw material for manufacturing or chemical processes; as raw material for alcohol or other biofuel fermentation and / or gasification and liquefaction processes and / or other biofuel production processes including, but not limited to, catalytic cracking, direct liquefaction, Fisher Tropsch processes, hydrogenation, methanol synthesis , pyrolysis, transesterification, or microbial synthesis gas conversions; as a biomass fuel for combustion, in particular, as a fuel to be coke with fossil fuels; as sources of pharmaceutical, medicinal or nutritional substances; as a carbon source for large-scale fermentations to produce various chemicals including, but not limited to, commercial enzymes, antibiotics, amino acids, vitamins, bioplastics, glycerol, or 1,3-propanediol; as a source of nutrient for the growth of other microbes or organisms; as animal feed including, but not limited to, cattle, sheep, chickens, pigs, or fish; as raw material for the production of methane or biogas; as fertilizer; soil additives and soil stabilizers.
[00118] An additional feature of certain embodiments of the present invention relates to the optimization of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms for the capture of carbon dioxide, the fixation of carbon in organic compounds, and the production of other valuable chemical by-products. This optimization can occur through methods known in the art of artificial crossing, including, but not limited to, accelerated mutagenesis (for example, with the use of ultraviolet light or chemical treatments), genetic engineering or modification, hybridization, synthetic biology or traditional selective crossing . For certain embodiments of the present invention that utilize a consortium of microorganisms, the community can be enriched with desirable oxide-hydrogen microorganisms using methods known in the microbiology technique through growth in the presence of targeted electron donors including, but not limited to , hydrogen, receptors, including, but not limited to, oxygen, and environmental conditions.
[00119] An additional feature of certain embodiments of the present invention relates to the modification of biochemical pathways in oxy-hydrogen microorganisms for the production of targeted organic compounds. This modification can be accomplished by manipulating the growth environment and / or by methods known in the art of artificial crossing, including, but not limited to, accelerated mutagenesis (for example, with the use of ultraviolet light or chemical treatments), engineering or modification genetics, hybridization, synthetic biology or traditional selective breeding. Organic compounds produced through modification include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: biofuels including, but not limited to, JP-8 jet fuel, diesel, gasoline, biodiesel, butanol, ethanol, long-chain hydrocarbons, lipids, fatty acids, pseudo-vegetable oil, and methane produced from biological reactions in vivo; or organic compounds and / or biomass optimized as raw material for the production of biofuel and / or liquid fuel through chemical post-processing. These forms of fuel can be used as renewable / alternative energy sources with low greenhouse gas emissions.
[00120] To give specific examples of the general biological and chemical process for using oxide-hydrogen microorganisms to capture CO2 and produce biomass and other useful co-products, a process flow chart describing a specific embodiment of the present invention is now provided and described . This specific example should not be construed as limiting the present invention in any way and is provided for the sole purpose of illustration.
[00121] Figure 2 includes an example process flowchart that illustrates a modality of the present invention for the capture of CO2 by oxide-hydrogen microorganisms and the production of lipid-rich biomass, which is converted into JP-8 jet fuel. In this set of modalities, a flue gas rich in carbon dioxide is captured from an emission source, such as a power plant, refinery, or cement producer. The flue gas can then be compressed and pumped into cylindrical anaerobic digesters that contain one or more oxide hydrogen microorganisms, such as, but not limited to, purple non-sulfur photosynthetic bacteria including, but not limited to, Rhodopseudomonas palustris, Rhodopseudomonas capsulata , Rhodopseudomonas viridis, Rhodopseudomonas sulfoviridis, Rhodopseudomonas blastica, and other Rhodopseudomonas sp.
[00122] In some embodiments, Rhodopseudomonas capsulata can be used as the microorganism of oxy-hydrogen, and in some cases, a doubling time of 6 hours for chemoautotrophic growth in hydrogen can be achieved. See, for example, Madigan, Gest, J. Bacteriology (1979) 524 to 530, which is incorporated herein by reference. In some embodiments, the microbial doubling time may be less than 6 hours, or less. In some embodiments, the dry biomass concentration can be at least about 3 g / l, at least about 4 g / l, or at least 5 g / l in a stable state. In some embodiments, the biomass lipid content in the oxy-hydrogen microorganism can be at least about 10%, at least about 20%, at least about 30%, at least about 35%, or at least about 40%. For example, in some embodiments, Rhodopseudomonas palustris can be used as the microorganism of oxy-hydrogen. See, for example, Carlozzi, Pintucci, Piccardi, Buccioni, Minieri, Lambardi, Biotechnol. Lett., (2009) DOI 10.1007 / s10529-009-0183- 2, which is incorporated herein by way of reference. In certain embodiments, the biomass lipid content of oxide-hydrogen microorganisms is at least 40%; there is a steady-state bioreactor cell density of at least 5 g / liter in a continuous process; the microbial doubling time is a maximum of 6 hours; the process achieves at least 40% energy efficiency in converting hydrogen to biomass; and / or at least 60% of the biomass energy content is stored as lipid (which corresponds to about 40% of biomass lipid content by weight).
[00123] In the set of modalities illustrated in Figure 2, the hydrogen electron donor and the electron receptors for oxygen and carbon dioxide are added continuously to the growth broth along with other nutrients required for chemosynthesis and maintenance of culture and growth which are pumped into the digester. In certain embodiments, the hydrogen source is a carbon dioxide-free process. Exemplary carbon dioxide emission-free processes include, for example, electrolytic or thermochemical processes powered by energy technologies, including, but not limited to, photovoltaic, solar thermal, wind energy, hydroelectric, nuclear, geothermal, enhanced geothermal, ocean thermal, ocean wave power, tidal power. In the set of modalities illustrated in Figure 2, oxygen serves as an electron receptor in the chemosynthetic reaction for the intracellular production of ATP through the oxide-hydrogen reaction linked to oxidative phosphorylation. Oxygen can originate from the flue gas, it can be generated from the split water reaction used to produce the hydrogen, and / or it can be removed from the air. In Figure 2, the flue gas carbon dioxide serves as an electron receptor for the synthesis of organic compounds through biochemical pathways that use the ATP produced through the reaction of oxide hydrogen and NADH and / or NADPH produced from enzymatically catalyzed reduction of intracellular NAD + or NADP + by H2. The culture broth can be continuously removed from the digesters and flowed through the membrane filters to separate the cell mass from the broth. The cell mass can then be recycled back to the digesters and / or pumped for post-processing where lipid extraction is performed, according to methods known to those skilled in the art. The lipids can then be converted to JP-8 jet fuel using methods known to those skilled in the biomass refinement technique (see, for example, US DOE Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy Biomass Program, “National Algal Biofuels Technology Roadmap ", May 2010, which is incorporated here as a reference in its entirety. The free cell broth that has passed through the cell mass that removes filters can then be subjected to any necessary additional residue removal treatments that depends on the flue gas source. The remaining water and nutrients can then be pumped back into the digesters.
[00124] Some of the Rhodopseudomonas species have extremely versatile metabolisms, making them capable of photoautotrophic, photoheterotrophic, heterotrophic growth, as well as chemoautotrophic growth and the ability to live in both aerobic and anaerobic environments [Madigan, Gest, J. Bacteriology (1979 ) 524 to 530]. In certain embodiments of the present invention, the heterotrophic ability of Rhodopseudomonas sp. is exploited to further improve the efficiency of converting energy and carbon into a lipid product. The remainder of the non-lipid biomass following lipid extraction is composed primarily of protein and carbohydrate. In certain embodiments of the present invention, part of the remainder of carbohydrate and / or protein following lipid extraction is hydrolyzed acid for simple sugars and / or amino acids, the acid is neutralized, and the solution of simple sugars and / or amino acids is fed to a second heterotrophic bioreactor containing Rhodopseudomonas sp. which consumes biomass input and produces additional lipid product, as shown in Figure 2.
[00125] The Rhodopseudomonas palustris genome was sequenced by DOE Joint Genome Institute [Larimer et.al (2003) Nature Biotechnology 22, 55 to 61]. It has been reported that its genetic system is particularly amenable to modification. In a set of embodiments of the present invention, the carbon fixation reaction or reactions is carried out by Rhodopseudomonas sp. which has been improved, optimized or modified for the fixation of carbon dioxide and / or other forms of improved inorganic carbon and / or the improved production of organic compounds through methods including, but not limited to, one or more of the following: accelerated mutagenesis , genetic engineering or modification, hybridization, synthetic biology or traditional selective breeding.
[00126] Figure 3 includes a schematic diagram exemplifying a bioreactor 300, which can be used in certain modalities. The bioreactor 300 can be used, for example, as the reactor illustrated as Box 4 in Figure 1 marked as “Bioreactor - Knallgas Microbes” and / or as the reactor illustrated as Box 4 in Figure 2 marked as “Bioreactor - Purple non - bacterial sulfur ”. The bioreactor 300 illustrated in Figure 3 can be operated to take advantage of the low solubilities of hydrogen gas and oxygen in water and avoids dangerous mixtures of hydrogen gas and oxygen. In addition, the bioreactor can supply the oxygen-hydrogen microorganisms with the oxygen and hydrogen needed for cellular energy and carbon fixation, for example, by spreading, bubbling, or diffusing oxygen or air upwards through a column of vertical liquid filled with culture medium.
[00127] The bioreactor 300 includes a first column 302 and a second column 304. In the set of modalities illustrated in Figure 3, oxygen is introduced in the first column 302 while hydrogen or synthesis gas is introduced in the second column 304, although in other modalities, its order can be reversed. Oxygen and / or hydrogen and / or synthesis gas can be introduced to their respective columns by, for example, spreading bubbling, and / or diffusing so that they travel upward through the culture medium. The bioreactor 300 may include a horizontal liquid connection 312 at the top of the columns and a horizontal liquid connection 314 at the bottom of the columns.
[00128] In some embodiments, the level of the liquid medium with column 302 is maintained so that the gaseous head space 316 is formed above the liquid. In addition, in some cases, the level of liquid medium in column 304 can be arranged so that the gaseous head space 318 is formed above the liquid medium. In some embodiments, the top space 316 and / or the top space 318 can occupy at least about 2%, at least about 10%, at least about 25%, between 2% and about 80%, between about 10% to about 80%, or between about 25% and about 80% of the total volume of the column on which they are positioned. The top spaces 316 and 318 can be isolated from each other by the liquid medium. In some embodiments, the low solubility of gases in the liquid medium allows the collection of gases at the tops of the columns after bubbling or diffusing the gases upward through their respective columns. Establishing isolated top spaces can prevent a dangerous amount of hydrogen and oxygen gases from mixing with each other. For example, you can prevent hydrogen gas in one column from mixing with oxygen gas in another column (and vice versa). The inhibition of mixing hydrogen and oxygen gases can be achieved, for example, by maintaining the connections between the two columns, so that they are filled with liquid, thereby preventing the transport of gases from one column to the other. In some embodiments, the top spaces 316 and / or 318 may remain substantially stationary at the top of their respective columns as the liquid medium is circulated between the first and second columns.
[00129] In Figure 3, the horizontal liquid connection 312 at the top of the columns and the horizontal liquid connection 314 at the bottom of the columns are arranged so that the liquid medium flows upwards in a column in the direction of the oxygen gas, and down in the other column, in countercurrent with hydrogen gas and / or synthesis gas while the horizontal liquid connections remain continuously filled. In other embodiments, the liquid medium can flow upwards in the column containing hydrogen gas and / or synthesis gas and downwards in the other column containing oxygen gas (in countercurrent flow in relation to the gas).
[00130] In some embodiments, the gas on either side, but not on both sides simultaneously, can be forcibly bubbled up so that that particular column acts as a pneumatic reactor and causes the circulation of the culture medium between the two columns . In some embodiments, fluid circulation can also be aided by impellers, turbines and / or pumps.
[00131] In some such modalities, any unused hydrogen gas and / or synthesis gas that passes through the culture medium without being absorbed by the microorganisms (and that can end up in the gap) can be recirculated by pumping the gas out of the top, optionally compressing it, and pumping it back to the middle at the bottom of the liquid column on the hydrogen and / or synthesis gas side. In some modalities, oxygen and / or air can be similarly recirculated on its respective side or, alternatively, dumped after passing through the top space.
[00132] Oxy-hydrogen microorganisms are allowed to circulate freely along with the liquid medium between the first and second columns in certain modalities. In other embodiments, the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms are restricted alongside the hydrogen, for example, with the use of a micro filter that retains the microorganisms on the hydrogen side, but allows the liquid medium to pass through it.
[00133] Figure 4 includes a schematic illustration illustrating another method of operation of bioreactor 300 that can be used in certain modalities. The bioreactor layout in Figure 4 can take advantage of the relatively high solubility of carbon dioxide and / or the large capacity of the oxide-hydrogen microorganism to capture carbon dioxide from relatively diluted currents. The operation illustrated in Figure 4 can explore the mechanism of concentration of carbon native to the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms. Flue gas and / or air containing carbon dioxide can be transported through the oxygen side of the bioreactor. The carbon dioxide can be dissolved in the solution and / or be absorbed by the oxide-hydrogen microbes and subsequently transported alongside the reactor's hydrogen, for example, through the horizontal liquid connection 312 at the top of the column. On the hydrogen side, reduction equivalents can be provided, which cause carbon fixation. In some embodiments, other gases pumped on the oxygen side (for example, oxygen, nitrogen, etc.) have a low solubility in relation to CO2, and are not transported to the hydrogen side. Instead of being passed from column 302 to column 304, the low solubility gases can be transported to the top space 316. In some embodiments, after the gases are transported to the top space 316, they can be dumped.
[00134] Figure 5 includes a schematic example diagram of an electrolysis device 500, which can be used in certain modalities. The electrolysis apparatus 500 can be used, for example, as the unit illustrated as Box 3 in Figure 1 marked as “Electron donor generation” and / or as the unit illustrated as Box 3 in Figure 2 marked as “Electrolysis” . The electrolysis device 500 can be designed to take advantage of the tolerance and need of the oxide-hydrogen microorganisms for a certain concentration of oxygen by decreasing or eliminating the complete separation of hydrogen and oxygen produced from the electrolysis step, in relation to the schemes of separation used in conventional electrolysis systems designed for the production of pure hydrogen. Apparatus 500 includes an electrolysis unit 502 that is configured to generate H2 and O2 from water. Any suitable electrolysis unit 502 can be used to perform the electrolysis step. In some embodiments, the electrical resistance in the 502 electrolysis unit can be reduced at the cost of complete separation of hydrogen and oxygen by means that include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: removal of the separator used to prevent the passage of gas in standard electrolysers and / or the use of a relatively short distance between positive and negative electrodes.
[00135] The apparatus 500 may include an outlet 504, through which the hydrogen and oxygen produced by the electrolysis unit 502 can be transported. Outlet 504 can be equipped with a separator 506, which can be used to separate at least a portion of the hydrogen from at least a portion of the oxygen. In certain embodiments, semipermeable membranes, such as polymer membranes designed for the separation of H2, can be employed as a 506 separator. In certain embodiments, the 506 separator may include metal sheets, including, but not limited to, sheets made of palladium, alloys of palladium, vanadium, niobium, tantalum and its alloys, and / or other metals and / or alloys that may be permeable to hydrogen, but less permeable to other gases, such as oxygen. In some embodiments, the separator can be used to separate hydrogen from oxygen so that the hydrogen content of a gas product exiting the separator is enriched to a level that is desirable for oxy-hydrogen microbes. The gas product can then be transported to a bioreactor, where it can be used as a raw material. In certain embodiments, the amount of hydrogen in one of the gas products exiting the separator can be set at a level so that the oxide-hydrogen microorganism activity is maximized, and the hydrogen loss produced through the electrolysis apparatus 500 is minimized.
[00136] The following documents are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes: US Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 328,184, filed on April 27, 2010 and entitled “USE OF OXYHYDROGEN MICROORGANISMS FOR NON-PHOTOSYNTHETIC CARBON CAPTURE AND CONVERSION OF INORGANIC CARBON SOURCES INTO USEFUL ORGANIC COMPOUNDS ”; Serial International Patent Application No. PCT / US2010 / 001402, filed on May 12, 2010, entitled “BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL PROCESS UTILIZING CHEMOAUTOTROPHIC MICROORGNISMS FOR THE CHEMOSYTHETIC FIXATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND / OR OTHER INORGANIC CARBON SOUND ORGANIC ORGANIC ORGANIC ORGANIC GENERATION OF ADDITIONAL USEFUL PRODUCTS ”; and US Patent Application Publication No. 2010/01/20104, filed on November 6, 2009, entitled “BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL PROCESS UTILIZING CHEMOAUTOTROPHIC MICROORGNISMS FOR THE CHEMOSYTHETIC FIXATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND / OR OTHER INORGANIC CARBON SOURCES INTO ORGANIC ORGANIC ORGANIC ORGANIZATION GENERATION OF ADDITIONAL USEFUL PRODUCTS ”.
[00137] The following examples are intended to illustrate certain embodiments of the present invention, but not to exemplify the full scope of the invention. EXAMPLE 1
[00138] In this example, oxy-hydrogen microorganisms that accumulate high lipid content and / or other valuable compounds, such as polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) are grown in an inorganic medium with CO2 as the carbon source and hydrogen acting as the donor electron while oxygen provides the electron receptor. Oxy-hydrogen microbes, like these, can be used in certain embodiments of the present invention by converting C1 chemicals, such as carbon dioxide, into longer-chain organic chemicals.
[00139] Static anaerobic reaction vessels were inoculated with Cupriavidus necator DSM 531 (which can accumulate a high percentage of cell mass, such as PHB). The inoculum was removed from agar plates of DSM medium no. 1 maintained under aerobic conditions at 28 degrees Celsius. Each anaerobic reaction vessel had 10 ml of DSM liquid medium No. 81 with 80% H2, 10% CO2 and 10% O2 in the head space. The cultures were incubated at 28 degrees Celsius. Cupriavidus necator reached an optical density (OD) at 600 nm of 0.98 and a cell density of 4.7 x 10 8 cells / ml after 8 days.
[00140] Another culture experiment was carried out for Cupriavidus necator (DSM 531). The medium used for growth was the mineral salt medium (MSM) formulated by Schlegel et al. The MSM medium was formed by mixing 1,000 ml of Medium A, 10 ml of Medium B, and 10 ml of Medium C. Medium A included 9 g / l Na2HPO4.12H2O, 1.5 g / l KH2PO4, 1.0 g / l, 0.2 g / l MgSO4.7H2O, and 1.0 ml of Residual Mineral Medium. The Residual Mineral Medium included 1,000 ml of distilled water; 100 mg / l of ZnSO4.7H2O; 30 mg / l of MnCl2.4 H2O; 300 mg / l of H3BO3; 200 mg / l of COCl2.6H2O; 10 mg / l of CuCl2.2 H2O; 20 mg / l NiCl2.6H2O; and 30 mg / l Na2MoO4.2H2O. Medium B contained 100 ml of distilled water; 50 mg of ferric ammonium citrate; and 100 mg of CaCl2. Medium C contained 100 ml of distilled water and 5 g of NaHCO3.
[00141] Cultures were grown in 20 ml of MSM medium in 150 ml serum bottles capped and sealed with the following gas mixture in the head space: 71% Hydrogen; 4% Oxygen; 16% Nitrogen; 9% carbon dioxide. The head space pressure was 7 psi. Cultures were grown for eight days at 30 degrees Celsius. Cupriavidus necator reached an OD at 600 nm of 0.86.
[00142] It is known that, in larger scale bioreactor equipment, faster growth rates and higher cell densities can be obtained. Accordingly, it is believed that higher growth rates and cell densities can be achieved simply by scaling up the systems described above. For example, Cupriavidus necator, which is also known as Alcaligenes eutrophus, Ralstonia eutropha, Hydrogenomona eutropha, was grown in bioreactors in H2 / CO2 / O2 to a cell density greater than 90 grams / liter [Tanaka, Ishizaki; Biotech. And Bioeng., Volume 45, 268 to 275 (1995)], and with doubling times below two hours [Ammann, Reed, Durichek, Appl. Microbio., (1968) 822 to 826].
[00143] Specific preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described here in sufficient detail to allow those skilled in the art to practice the full scope of the invention. However, it should be understood that many possible variations of the present invention, which have not been specifically described, still fall within the scope of the present invention and the appended claims. Therefore, these descriptions given in this document are added as an example only and are not intended to limit, in any way, the scope of this invention. More generally, those skilled in the art will readily see that all parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations described in this document are intended to be exemplary and that all parameters, dimensions, materials, and / or actual configurations will depend on the application or applications specific for which the teachings of the present invention is / are used. Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able to guarantee, with the use of no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specific modalities of the invention described in this document. It should, therefore, be understood that the foregoing embodiments are given by way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended and equivalent claims thereof, the invention may be practiced in a manner other than that specifically described and claimed. The present invention is directed to each individual characteristic, system, article, material, kit, and / or method described in this document. In addition, any combination of two or more characteristics, systems, articles, materials, kits, and / or methods, if such characteristics, systems, articles, materials, kits, and / or methods are not mutually inconsistent, is included in the scope of this invention.
[00144] The indefinite articles “one” and “one”, as used in the specification and in the claims, unless clearly indicated to the contrary, should be understood as meaning “at least one”.
[00145] The expression “and / or”, as used here in the specification and in the claims must be understood as meaning “either or both” of the elements joined in this way, that is, elements that are present together in some cases and present separately in other cases. Other elements may optionally be present, other than elements specifically identified by the expression “and / or”, whether or not related to those elements specifically identified, unless clearly indicated otherwise. Therefore, as a non-limiting example, a reference to “A and / or B”, when used in conjunction with multiple interpretation language, such as “understands”, can be referred to, in one modality, A without B (optionally including different elements of B); in another modality, B without A (optionally including elements other than A); in yet another modality, both A and B (optionally including other elements); etc.
[00146] As used here in the specification and in the claims, “or” should be understood as having the same meaning as “and / or”, as defined above. For example, when separating items in a list, “or” or “and / or” should be interpreted as being inclusive, that is, the inclusion of at least one, but also including more than one, of a number or list of elements, and optionally additional items not listed. Only terms that clearly indicate the contrary, such as "just one of them" or "exactly one of them", or, when used in the claims, "which consists of", will refer to the inclusion of exactly one element of a number or list of elements . In general, the term “or”, as used in this document, should be interpreted only as indicating exclusive alternatives (ie “one or the other, but not both”) when preceded by terms of exclusivity, such as “one or the other”, “One among”, “just one among” or “exactly one among”. “It essentially consists of”, when used in the claims, should have its ordinary meaning, as used in the field of patent law.
[00147] In the claims, as well as in the above specification, all transitional expressions, such as "that comprises", "that includes", "that door", "that has", "that contains", "that involves", " that retains ”, and the like must be understood as being of multiple interpretations, that is, they mean including, but without limitation. Only the transitional expressions "consists of" and "consists essentially of" must be transitional expressions of single or semi-unique interpretation, respectively.

权利要求:
Claims (41)
[0001]
1. Biological and chemical method for the capture and conversion of an inorganic carbon compound and / or an organic compound containing only one carbon atom in an organic chemical product, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that it comprises: introducing an inorganic carbon compound and / or an organic compound containing only one carbon atom in a bioreactor comprising a compatible environment for the maintenance of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms and / or capable of maintaining extracts of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms; and converting the inorganic carbon compound and / or the organic compound containing only one carbon atom in the organic chemical and / or a precursor of it within the environment through at least one chemosynthetic carbon fixation reaction using an oxidizing microorganism hydrogen and / or cell extracts containing enzymes from the oxy-hydrogen microorganisms; wherein the oxy-hydrogen microorganism is selected from the group consisting of Rhodococcus sp .; Ralstonia sp .; Alcaligenes sp .; Hydrogenovibrio sp .; Hydrogenobacter sp .; and Xanthobacter sp .; wherein the organic chemical produced includes compounds with carbon chain lengths between C5 and C30; and where the chemosynthetic fixation reaction is at least partially driven by electrochemical and / or chemical energy provided by electron donors and electron receptors that have been generated chemically and / or electrochemically and / or are introduced into the environment from at least one external source of the bioreactor.
[0002]
2. Biological and chemical method for the capture and conversion of an inorganic carbon compound and / or an organic compound containing only one carbon atom in biomass and / or biochemicals, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that it comprises: introducing an inorganic carbon compound and / or an organic compound containing only one carbon atom in a bioreactor comprising an environment compatible for the maintenance of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms and / or capable of maintaining extracts of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms; and converting the inorganic carbon compound and / or the organic compound containing only one carbon atom to biomass and / or biochemicals within an environment through at least one chemosynthetic carbon fixation reaction using oxy-hydrogen microorganisms consisting of Cupriavidus necator and / or extracts of cells containing enzymes of the oxy-hydrogen microorganism consisting of Cupriavidus necator; where the chemosynthetic fixation reaction is at least partially driven by electrochemical and / or chemical energy provided by electron donors and electron receptors that have been generated chemically and / or electrochemically and / or thermochemically and / or are introduced into the environment from at least one external source of the bioreactor; where mixtures of explosive gas phases of hydrogen and oxygen are prevented by accumulation within the bioreactor environment; wherein biomass and / or biochemicals are produced by at least one chemosynthetic carbon fixation reaction; where the carbon fixation reaction is maintained using a continuous inflow and removal of nutrient and / or biomass medium and where the concentrations of electron donors and electron receptors, and the levels of nitrogen and phosphorus, are maintained at levels for maximum absorption and fixation of the inorganic carbon compound and / or the organic compound containing only one carbon atom; and in which the biomass and / or biochemicals are separated from the environment and are processed into a product comprising an animal feed, a fertilizer, a soil additive, a soil stabilizer, a carbon source for large-scale fermentations and / or a source of nutrients for the growth of other microbes or organisms.
[0003]
3. Biological and chemical method for the capture and conversion of an inorganic carbon compound and / or an organic compound containing only one carbon atom in a protein product derived from biomass, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that it comprises: introducing a carbon compound inorganic and / or an organic compound containing only one carbon atom in a bioreactor comprising a compatible environment for the maintenance of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms and / or capable of maintaining extracts of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms; and converting the inorganic carbon compound and / or the organic compound containing only one carbon atom to biomass within the environment through at least one chemosynthetic carbon fixation reaction using an oxy-hydrogen microorganism and / or cell extracts containing enzymes oxy-hydrogen microorganisms; wherein the oxy-hydrogen microorganism is selected from the group consisting of Rhodococcus sp .; Ralstonia sp .; Alcaligenes sp .; Hydrogenovibrio sp .; Hydrogenobacter sp .; and Xanthobacter sp .; where the chemosynthetic fixation reaction is (i) non-photosynthetic, (ii) conducted under aerobic, microaerobic or facultative conditions, (iii) at least partially conducted by electrochemical and / or chemical energy provided by electron donors and electron receptors that have been generated chemically and / or electrochemically and / or are introduced into the environment from at least one external source of the bioreactor; and (iv) maintained using a continuous inflow and removal of the nutrient and / or biomass medium; and in which the concentrations of electron donors and electron receptors, and the levels of nitrogen and phosphorus, are maintained at levels for maximum absorption and fixation of the inorganic carbon compound and / or the organic compound containing only one carbon atom.
[0004]
Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the inorganic carbon compound comprises carbon dioxide.
[0005]
5. Method according to claim 4, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that carbon dioxide comprises carbon dioxide gas, alone and / or dissolved in a mixture or solution further comprising a carbonate ion and / or a bicarbonate ion.
[0006]
6. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the inorganic carbon comprises an inorganic carbon contained in a solid phase.
[0007]
Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the organic compound containing only one carbon atom comprises carbon monoxide, methane, methanol, formate, and / or formic acid.
[0008]
8. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that such electron donors and / or organic compounds containing only one carbon atom are generated through gasification and / or pyrolysis of organic matter and supplied as a synthesis gas for the oxy-hydrogen microorganism.
[0009]
9. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that such electron donors and / or organic compounds containing only one carbon atom are generated through a reformed methane stream and supplied as a synthesis gas for the oxy-hydrogen microorganism.
[0010]
10. Method according to claim 8 or 9, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the ratio of hydrogen to carbon monoxide in the synthesis gas is adjusted through the water gas transferring the reaction before the synthesis gas is released to the microorganism of oxy-hydrogen.
[0011]
11. Method according to claim 1 or 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the oxy-hydrogen microorganism includes an oxy-hydrogen microorganism selected from one or more of the following genera: Ralstonia sp .; Alcaligenes sp ..
[0012]
12. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that electron donors include, but are not limited to one or more of the following reducing agents: ammonia; ammonium; carbon monoxide; dithionite; elemental sulfur; Hydrocarbons; hydrogen; metabisulfites; nitric oxide; nitrites; sulfates such as thiosulfates including, but not limited to, sodium thiosulfate (Na2S2O3) or calcium thiosulfate (CaS2O3); sulfides such as hydrogen sulfide; sulfites; thionate; thionite; transition metals or their sulfides; oxides, chalcogenides, halides, hydroxides, oxyhydroxides, phosphates, sulfates, or carbonates, in dissolved or solid phases; and electrons from the conduction or valence layer in solid-state electrode materials.
[0013]
13. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the electron receptors comprise one or more of the following: carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrites, nitrates, ferric ions or other transition metal ions , sulfates, or holes in the conduction layer or valence in solid-state electrode materials.
[0014]
14. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the conversion step is preceded by one or more chemical pre-processing steps in which such electron donors and / or such electron receptors are generated and / or refined from at least one chemical input and / or are recycled from chemicals produced during the fixation stage and / or chemicals derived from waste streams from other industrial, mining, agriculture processes, sewage and waste generation.
[0015]
15. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the conversion step is followed by one or more process steps in which the inorganic and / or organic chemicals of chemosynthesis are separated from a stream process produced during the conversion step and processed to form products in a compatible manner for storage, shipping, and sale; as well as one or more process steps in which the cell mass is separated from the process stream and recycled to the environment as and / or collected and processed to produce biomass in a compatible form for storage, shipping, and sale.
[0016]
16. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the conversion step is followed by one or more process steps in which the waste products and / or impurities and / or contaminants are removed from a process stream produced during the fixing and disposition stage.
[0017]
17. Method according to claim 16, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the waste products comprise a waste product from the nutrient medium used to maintain the oxy-hydrogen reaction.
[0018]
18. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the conversion step is followed by one or more process steps in which any unused nutrients and / or processed water left after removal of the dough cell of oxy-hydrogen and / or chemical co-products of chemosynthesis and / or waste products or contaminants from the process stream produced during the fixation step are recycled back into the environment to support another chemosynthesis.
[0019]
19. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that such electron donors and / or electron receivers are generated or recycled using renewable, alternative, or conventional sources of energy that are low in emissions of greenhouse gases, and where such energy sources are selected from at least photovoltaic, solar thermal energy, wind energy, hydroelectric, nuclear, geothermal, increased geothermal, ocean thermal, sea wave energy, and tidal energy .
[0020]
20. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that such electron donors are generated from minerals of natural origin selected from one or more of the following: Fe0elementar; siderite (FeCO3); magnetite (Fe3O4); pyrite or marcassite (FeS2), pyrrhotite (Fe (1-x) S (x = 0 to 0.2), pentlandite (Fe, Ni) 9S8, violarite (Ni2FeS4), bravoite (Ni, Fe) S2, arsenopyrite (FeAsS ), or other iron sulfides; enhancing (AsS); orbiting (As2S3); cobaltite (CoAsS); rhodochrosite (MnCO3); chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), bornite (Cu5FeS4), covelite (CuS), tetrahedrite (Cu8Sb2S7), enar Cu3AsS4), tennantite (Cu12As4.S13), calcocite (Cu2S), or other copper sulfides; sphalerite (ZnS), marmatite (ZnS), or other zinc sulfides; galena (PbS), geochronite (Pb5 (Sb, As2) S8), or other lead sulfides; argentite or acanthite (Ag2S); molybdenite (MoS2); millerite (NiS), polydimite (Ni3S4) or other nickel sulfides; antimonite (Sb2S3); Ga2S3; CuSe; cooperite (PtS); laurite (RuS2); braggite (Pt, Pd, Ni) S; FeCl2.
[0021]
21. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that such electron donors are generated from pollutants or waste products selected from one or more of the following: process gas, waste gas, gas improved oil recovery ventilation; biogas, acid mine drainage; landfill leachate; landfill gas; geothermal gas; geothermal sludge or brine; metallic contaminants; denim; waste; sulfides; disulfides; mercaptans selected from one or more of methyl and dimethyl mercaptan and ethyl mercaptan, carbonyl sulfide, carbon disulfide, alkanesulfonates; dialkyl sulfides; thiosulfate; thiofurans; thiocyanates; isothiocyanates; thioureas; thiols; thiophenols; thioethers; thiophene; dibenzothiophene; tetrathionate; dithionite; thionate; dialkyl disulfides; sulfones; sulfoxides; sulfolans; sulfonic acid; dimethylsulfoniopropionate; sulfonic esters; hydrogen sulfide; sulfate esters; organic sulfur; sulfur dioxide and all other sour gases.
[0022]
22. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the release of a reduction equivalent from such electron donors to the oxy-hydrogen microorganisms for such reactions or chemosynthetic reaction during the fixation step it is kinetically and / or thermodynamically enhanced by one or more introductions of hydrogen materials stored in the environment in the form of a solid support medium for microbial growth that facilitates bringing electron donors of absorbed or adsorbed hydrogen in close proximity to the chemoautotrophic organisms; introduction of electron mediators to help transfer the energy reduction of a poor soluble electron donor comprising an H2 gas or electrons in solid-state electrode materials from chemoautotrophic culture media and introduction of electrode materials in the form of a solid growth support directly in the environment that facilitates bringing solid-state electrons in close proximity to chemoautotrophic organisms.
[0023]
23. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that at least one chemosynthetic reaction is carried out by oxy-hydrogen microorganisms that have been perfected, optimized or engineered to fix an inorganic carbon compound and / or an organic compound containing only one carbon atom and the production of organic compounds using methods including one or more of the following: accelerated mutagenesis, genetic engineering or modification, hybridization, synthetic biology and natural selective breeding.
[0024]
24. Method, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the organic chemical is a fatty acid, a lipid or a terpenoid.
[0025]
25. Method, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the oxy-hydrogen microorganism comprises a modified biochemical pathway for the production of the organic chemical.
[0026]
26. Method, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that it also comprises recovering the organic chemical with a non-polar solvent.
[0027]
27. Method according to claim 26, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the organic chemical is soluble in hexane.
[0028]
28. Method according to claim 1 or 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the oxy-hydrogen microorganism comprises one or more of Rhodococcus opacus, Hydrogenovibrio marinus and Hydrogenobacter thermophilus.
[0029]
29. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the energy for carbon fixation is provided by an abiotic process.
[0030]
30. Method according to any of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that said electron donor is produced by electrolysis of water.
[0031]
31. Method, according to claim 2 or 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that biomass and / or biochemicals are produced by at least one chemosynthetic carbon fixation reaction, in which biomass and / or biochemicals are separated from the environment and are processed into a product that comprises animal feed, a nutritional product, a nutraceutical, a fertilizer, a soil additive, a soil stabilizer, a carbon source for large-scale fermentations and / or a source of nutrients for growth other microbes or organisms.
[0032]
32. Method, according to claim 31, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that biomass and / or biochemicals are processed in fish feed.
[0033]
33. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the environment compatible for the maintenance of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms and / or capable of maintaining extracts of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms comprises 2-6% O2 .
[0034]
34. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that a feed gas comprising 2-12% O2 is introduced into the environment suitable for the maintenance of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms and / or capable of maintain extracts of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms.
[0035]
35. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that electron donors and / or electron receptors are generated thermochemically and / or electrochemically, and in which thermochemical and / or electrochemical generation is fed by an emission free of carbon dioxide or low carbon emission and / or renewable energy source and / or by gasification, pyrolysis or steam reforming of a raw material of biomass or waste or biogas.
[0036]
36. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that said bioreactor does not comprise transparent materials that expose oxy-hydrogen microorganisms and / or extracts of oxy-hydrogen microorganisms to light.
[0037]
37. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the electron donor comprises H2 and the electron receiver comprises O2 and in which the chemosynthetic carbon fixation reaction uses ATP produced through the reaction of oxy-hydrogen.
[0038]
38. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that electron donors comprise H2 and electron receivers comprise O2, in which the bioreactor comprises a gas head space, and in what quantities H2 and O2 substances are prevented from mixing with each other in the top space of that bioreactor.
[0039]
39. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that electron donors comprise H2, in which the bioreactor comprises a gas head space, and in which the H2 gas in the head space bioreactor does not accumulate at a concentration in the range of 4% to 74.5%.
[0040]
40. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the electron receptors comprise O2, in which the bioreactor comprises a gas head space, and in which the O2 gas in the head space of the bioreactor accumulates at a concentration in the range of 2% to 6%.
[0041]
41. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that a feed gas comprising H2 and / or synthesis gas is introduced into the environment, in which the bioreactor comprises a gas head space, in which H2 and / or synthesis gas that are not used by microorganisms in the reaction of fixing the chemosynthetic carbon passes through the environment and into the top space of the gas and is recirculated by pumping the gas out of the top space, compressing it and pumping it the back to the environment.

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同族专利:

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公开号 | 公开日

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MY165658A|2018-04-18|

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WO2011139804A3|2012-04-05|

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JP2013542710A|2013-11-28|

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BR112012027661A2|2015-11-24|

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WO2011139804A2|2011-11-10|

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EP2582817A4|2016-07-06|

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EP2582817A2|2013-04-24|

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法律状态:
2018-04-10| B06F| Objections, documents and/or translations needed after an examination request according art. 34 industrial property law|

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2019-08-27| B06U| Preliminary requirement: requests with searches performed by other patent offices: suspension of the patent application procedure|

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2020-03-10| B06A| Notification to applicant to reply to the report for non-patentability or inadequacy of the application according art. 36 industrial patent law|

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2020-08-18| B09A| Decision: intention to grant|

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2020-12-08| B16A| Patent or certificate of addition of invention granted|Free format text: PRAZO DE VALIDADE: 20 (VINTE) ANOS CONTADOS A PARTIR DE 27/04/2011, OBSERVADAS AS CONDICOES LEGAIS. |

优先权:

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申请号 | 申请日 | 专利标题

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US32818410P| true| 2010-04-27|2010-04-27|

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US61/328,184|2010-04-27|

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PCT/US2010/001402|WO2011056183A1|2009-11-06|2010-05-12|Biological and chemical process utilizing chemoautotrophic microorganisms for the chemosynthetic fixation of carbon dioxide and/or other inorganic carbon sources into organic compounds, and the generation of additional useful products|

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USPCT/US2010/001402|2010-05-12|

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PCT/US2011/034218|WO2011139804A2|2010-04-27|2011-04-27|Use of oxyhydrogen microorganisms for non-photosynthetic carbon capture and conversion of inorganic and/or c1 carbon sources into useful organic compounds|

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