Optical Evaluation of Effects of Energy Substrates on PHB Accumulation for Bioplastic Production

To date, hundreds of millions tons of plastics has been produced worldwide. Their production and disposal are associated with high pollution and carbon release into the atmosphere. A more environmentally friendly alternative is bioplastics, and the most popular is polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) polymer. Large amounts of PHB can be obtained from activated sludge where used cooking oil or other industrial waste can be used as potential substrates. In this work, efficient bioplastic production strategies are studied, and the considered substrate is a mixture of oil and peptone. Pseudomonas fluorescens bacteria are used to accumulate PHB, and the cultivation of microorganisms is carried out in batch and continuous-flow bioreactors. Microscopic observations and laboratory essays are performed to confirm presence of PHB and other key parameters. The obtained results allow us to determine the optimal feeding strategy.

Automated summary

To date, the production and disposal of plastics have caused high pollution and carbon release. Bioplastics, especially polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) polymer, are considered as an environmentally friendly alternative. This study investigates efficient strategies for bioplastic production using a mixture of oil and peptone as the substrate. Pseudomonas fluorescens bacteria are used for PHB accumulation in batch and continuous-flow bioreactors. Microscopic observations and laboratory essays confirm the presence of PHB and other important parameters, enabling the determination of optimal feeding strategies.