Transiting from Adipic Acid to Bioadipic Acid. 1, Petroleum-Based Processes

Abstract

Adipic acid, which is a very important commodity chemical, is traditionally manufactured industrially by an aged and unsustainable multistep process that involves homogeneous catalysts, aggressive oxidants (concentrated nitric acid) and the production of large quantities of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide. Much research and development into alternative and cleaner process routes to adipic acid have been carried out over the past 70 years. Improved reaction schemes have invoked variations in fossil raw materials (from benzene and phenol to cyclohexane, cyclohexanol, cyclohexanone, cyclohexene, butadiene, and adiponitrile, etc.), oxidants (O 2 , air, H 2 O 2 , t-BuOOH, ozone), catalysts (homogeneous, heterogeneous, phase transfer, biomimetic) and reaction conditions (low temperature, atmospheric pressure, and solvent-, metal-, halide-, and corrosion-free). No single proposed alternative pathwaysome of which are purely academicsimultaneously addresses the problems of petrochemical origin, toxic starting materials or reagents, generation of environmentally incompatible byproducts, use of forcing reaction conditions, and cost in an entirely satisfactory manner, despite very intense efforts. Recently, more benign bio-based reaction pathways have been proposed starting from renewables, such as glucose or vegetable oils (which will be discussed in Part 2 of this series).

Structural basis for high‐affinity adipate binding to AdpC (RPA4515), an orphan periplasmic‐binding protein from the tripartite tricarboxylate transporter (TTT) family in Rhodopseudomonas palustris

“…Adipate is one of the most frequently used carboxylates industrially, with a global production of~2.6 million ton/year [46]. Adipate is one of the most frequently used carboxylates industrially, with a global production of~2.6 million ton/year [46].…”

“…Our identification of a high-affinity, adipate-binding protein is also relevant in the context of biotechnology. Adipate is one of the most frequently used carboxylates industrially, with a global production of~2.6 million ton/year [46]. Its main use is as a precursor for nylon 6-6 fibres, but it is also used in polyurethane production and as a food additive in foods that require acidity regulation [47].…”

Evolution-guided engineering of small-molecule biosensors

“…In order to demonstrate the broader usefulness of high-throughput directed evolution of aTF-based biosensors evolved in yeast, we sought to demonstrate chassis portability. As an example biosensor we chose TiSNO120, a BenM variant affinity-matured for adipic acid biosensing - a molecule being one of the primary targets for platform chemicals in biorefineries 55 . As a recipient chassis we choose E. coli , a commonly used biotechnology workhorse, with adipic acid tolerance up to 50 mM (Fig.…”

Genetic Manipulation of a Lipolytic Yeast Candida aaseri SH14 Using CRISPR-Cas9 System

“…Among them, adipic acid (1,6 hexanedioic acid) is an important building block for the manufacture of nylon 6,6, thermoplastic polyurethane resins, plasticisers, adhesives and synthetic lubricants [4]. The estimated global production of adipic acid in 2016 was 3.3 million tons, with an annual growth of 3% to 3.5% per year [5,6].…”