Technological development of the bio-based 2,3-butanediol process

The biotechnological production of 2,3-butanediol (2,3-BDO) has economic and environmental advantages over the chemical route, although its large-scale implementation has not yet been consolidated. To establish the technological maturity of the bio-based 2,3-BDO process, and the factors limiting its industrial use, a technology roadmap was built from patents and scientific articles, in which four drivers were identified: production process, recovery process, product, and application. The production process driver was reported in 53.25% of documents, notably including studies on substrates, engineered microorganisms, efficient production methods, and nutritional supplementation. The recovery process driver was investigated in 23.5% of studies, with conventional distillation and solvent extraction being the main technologies performed on a large scale. Product and application drivers accounted for 9.25% and 14% of studies, respectively, highlighting the chemical intermediates, plastics, food additives, and cosmetics market segments. A limited number of companies like LanzaTech and GS Caltex Corporation already produce industrially bio-based 2,3-BDO, while academic centers such as the Yancheng Institute of Technology are focused to the laboratory scale with technologies to be implemented in the long term. This study can therefore help to establish and gain an understanding of the necessary strategies to consolidate the industrial production of bio-based 2,3-BDO in the future. (c) 2020 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Automated summary

The biotechnological production of 2,3-butanediol offers economic and environmental advantages but faces challenges in large-scale implementation. Four key drivers, including production process, recovery process, product, and application, influence the industrial use of bio-based 2,3-BDO. While some companies have already achieved industrial production of bio-based 2,3-BDO, there are still many technological advancements to be made in this field.