Diesel-producing E. coli bacteria may change the future of biofuel

With support from Shell, researchers at the University of Exeter have developed a technique to make a special strain of E. coli bacteria produce diesel on demand.

 

According to Science Daily, the bacteria-produced diesel is almost identical to regular diesel fuel. This means it is not required to be blended with petroleum products, in contrast to biodiesels acquired from plant oils.

Using existing infrastructure  

Another advantage of this bacteria-produced diesel is that engines, pipelines, and tankers do not need to be modified to be able to make use of it. This diesel can therefore be used with current supplies in existing infrastructure.

 

“Producing a commercial biofuel that can be used without needing to modify vehicles has been the goal of this project from the outset,” said University of Exeter Biosciences professor, John Love. “Replacing conventional diesel with a carbon neutral biofuel in commercial volumes would be a tremendous step towards meeting our target of an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Global demand for energy is rising and a fuel that is independent of both global oil price fluctuations and political instability is an increasingly attractive prospect.”

 

E. coli bacteria undergo a natural oil production process – in which they convert sugar into fat – for the purpose of building their cell membranes. Harnessing this process is key to synthesizing fuel oil molecules. Currently, only small quantities of this biofuel can be produced in the laboratory, but researchers are keen on developing the technique further to provide a viable commercial alternative to conventional biodiesels.

 

“We are proud of the work being done by Exeter in using advanced biotechnologies to create the specific hydrocarbon molecules that we know will continue to be in high demand in the future,” said Rob Lee from Shell Projects & Technology. “While the technology still faces several hurdles to commercialization, by exploring this new method of creating biofuel, along with other intelligent technologies, we hope they could help us to meet the challenges of limiting the rise in carbon dioxide emissions while responding to the growing global requirement for transport fuel,” he added. — TJD, GMA News