White Biotechnology

Course Description

COURSE CONTENT

• Definition of term White Biotechnology, objectives, renewable and non-renewable resources, classification of renewable resources (raw materials), steps of processing, mass and energy balance and process sustainability, centralized and decentralized production, basic criteria of process sustainability (SPI)
• Bioethanol as fuel, reasons for biofuel usage, Kyoto Protocol, Croatia's ability to produce bioethanol, sugar beet bioethanol, lignocellulosic raw materials and Jerusalem artichokes (efficiency index, SPI and LCA of these processes).
• Energy production balances from sustainable raw materials, sugar bioethanol; raw material mass balance, energy process analysis and possible improvements, bioethanol and lignocellulose complex, bioethanol from starch (grains)?
• Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), categories of negative impact on environment, ISO standards and environmental impact, LCA phases, LCA calculation tools and LCA types
• Production of organic acids (citrate, succinate, apple, wine) from renewable raw materials
• Production of lactic acid and poly-lactate from renewable raw materials, comparison of chemical and biotechnological processes, medium for production and isolation of lactic acid, Chargill-Dow PLA production process
• Biodiesel, biodiesel raw materials, technological processes and secondary by-products, biotechnological conversion of by-products from biodiesel production (glycerol phase and saturated fatty acids), mass and energy balance, SPI, LCA
• Lignocellulosic (LC) raw materials and possibilities of biotechnological conversion, enzyme and microbiological degradation of LC complexes, LCA and SPI
• PHA / PHB biotechnological production from renewable raw materials, algae and white biotechnology, phototrophic and heterotrophic algae production, algal fuel production, LCA and SPI of biotechnological processes

LEARNING OUTCOMES

• evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using renewable raw materials in biotechnological production
• justify the importance of the ecological and economic sustainability of biotechnological production of biomass, biofuels (biodiesel, bioethanol, biogas) and biochemicals
• prepare and conduct LCA of entire biotechnological process
• prepare and calculate SPI of a biotechnological process