Energy biocatalysis

Renewable feedstock, waste minimization, biocatalysis optimization, low energy consumption... 

This paper is a statement of the author s opinions. These have been refined and occasionally corrected by helpful comments and criticisms from Frances Arnold, Georges Belfort, Harvey Blanch, Doug Clark, Clark Colton, Larry Erickson, Mike Shuler, Tony Sinskey, and all of my research group. The author is also indebted to the National Science Foundation and the Chemical and Biocatalysis Program of the U.S. Department of Energy for financial support of research in several areas considered in this commentary. 

Biocatalysis presents the advantages of high specificity, efficiency, energy conservation, and pollution reduction. Therefore, Biocatalysis and biotechnology are increasingly important for bioenergy production. 

Explored the role of fundamental chemistry in biocatalysis applications for energy systems. 

Raper explained that NSF programs support the following bioinspired chemistry for energy research under the National Biofuels Action Plan metabolic engineering, plant genome research, catalysis and biocatalysis, biochemical... 

Another key topic - renewable resources - is addressed in Chapter 8. The utilization of fossil resources as sources of energy and chemical feedstocks is clearly unsustainable and needs to be replaced by the use of renewable biomass. Such a switch is also desirable for other reasons such as biocompatibility, biodegradability and lower toxicity of the products compared to their oil-derived counterparts. Here again, the application of chemo- and biocatalysis will play an important underlying role. 

The potential environmental and economic advantages that biocatalysts promise certainly warrant the necessary investments required to overcome the energy barriers of reducing biocatalysis to practice in the synthesis of both commodity and fine chemicals. The last quarter-century has brought extensive advancement is the field of biocatalysis and the next quarter-century promises to yield further advances. 

Energy diagram 3.7 is of course very similar in heterogeneous, homogeneous and biocatalysis, since kinetics is similar. A difference to be taken into accoxmt is that in the liquid phase adsorption is to be considered with respect to the liquid phase. 

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