Repurposing of waste PET by microbial biotransformation to functionalized materials for additive manufacturing

We present the leveraging of PET hydrolyzing enzymes and rewiring the bacterial C2 and aromatic catabolic pathways to obtain high-value chemicals and polymers. Since PET mechanical recycling back to original materials is cost-prohibitive, the biochemical technology is a viable alternative to upcycle PET into novel 3D printing materials, such as replacements for acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). The presented hybrid chemo-bio approaches potentially enable the manufacturing of environmentally friendly degradable or higher-value high-performance polymers and composites and their reuse for a circular economy.PMID:37248049 | DOI:10.1093/jimb/kuad010
Source: Journal of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology - Category: Microbiology Authors: Source Type: research