Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-12-01DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.11.001
Jakub P. Masnica , Syed Sibt-e-Hassan , Sanja Potgieter-Vermaak , Yagya N. Regmi , Laurie A. King , Lubomira Tosheva
{"title":"ZIF-8-derived Fe-C catalysts: Relationship between structure and catalytic activity toward the oxygen reduction reaction","authors":"Jakub P. Masnica , Syed Sibt-e-Hassan , Sanja Potgieter-Vermaak , Yagya N. Regmi , Laurie A. King , Lubomira Tosheva","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.11.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.11.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity of carbonized ZIF-8 (CZ) and its Fe-doped derivatives, CZ-A (doped with ammonium iron (II) sulphate) and CZ-B (doped with iron (II) acetate), were examined in both acidic (0.5 M H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>) and basic (0.1 M KOH) electrolytes using a rotating disk electrode setup. These data show that the ORR activity of the Fe-doped catalysts is higher than that of pure CZ, with a higher activity in basic than acidic electrolyte. Extensive materials characterization highlights important differences in the sample crystallinity, morphology, porosity, and chemical composition as a function of the deployed precursor. The performance of the prepared catalysts is also impacted by the Fe precursor selection, highlighting the importance of such synthetic parameters in controlling the density and identify of Fe-Nx active sites. These results demonstrate the potential application of Fe-doped carbonized ZIF-8 catalysts for the ORR in basic electrolyte and offer important knowledge for the future design of non-precious metal fuel cell electrocatalysts.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 2","pages":"Pages 160-169"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950155523000265/pdfft?md5=063db754d76f6997c4f45b57930bb907&pid=1-s2.0-S2950155523000265-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135614833","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-10-23DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.10.005
Yongyan Xi , Feiyu Fan , Xueli Zhang
{"title":"Microbial L-malic acid production: History, current progress, and perspectives","authors":"Yongyan Xi , Feiyu Fan , Xueli Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.10.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.greenca.2023.10.005","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>L-malic acid (L-MA) is an important intermediate in the tricarboxylic acid cycle and a crucial bulk chemical with various applications in the food, pharmaceutical, and chemical industries. With the rapid advancements in metabolic engineering technology and the global commitment toward fostering a green economy and sustainable development, the large-scale production of L-MA is gradually transitioning from conventional petroleum-based approaches to microbial fermentation. This comprehensive review aims to provide a thorough overview of the historical background and recent advancements in the microbial fermentation production of L-MA, encompassing an in-depth introduction to diverse biosynthetic pathways and host strains. Moreover, this review elucidates the challenges encountered in the industrialization of microbial fermentation production of L-MA, offering a summary of potential solutions and prospects for future research directions. The anticipated outcome of this review is to contribute valuable theoretical guidance toward promoting technological innovation in L-MA production.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 2","pages":"Pages 118-132"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950155523000241/pdfft?md5=5d8f70fb955dd3e253e0254f28628d68&pid=1-s2.0-S2950155523000241-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91641052","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-10-23DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.10.003
Wenhang Wang , Chunyang Zeng , Noritatsu Tsubaki
{"title":"Recent advancements and perspectives of the CO2 hydrogenation reaction","authors":"Wenhang Wang , Chunyang Zeng , Noritatsu Tsubaki","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.10.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.10.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Owing to excessive carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) emissions, which cause severe environmental issues, the conversion and utilization of CO<sub>2</sub> have received increasing attention. Owing to its high efficiency and potential for industrial applications, converting CO<sub>2</sub> into high value-added chemicals via thermocatalytic hydrogenation is a highly effective route among electrocatalytic, photocatalytic, and thermocatalytic CO<sub>2</sub> conversion. In the past two decades, our group has developed novel CO<sub>2</sub> hydrogenation technologies to produce chemicals such as aliphatic hydrocarbons, methanol (MeOH), ethanol, and aromatics (especially <em>para</em>-xylene, PX). In this review, we summarize the strategy for CO<sub>2</sub> hydrogenation conversion and the novel rational design of catalysts, including low-temperature MeOH synthesis and capsule catalysts for tandem catalysis. We also discuss the challenges and opportunities of CO<sub>2</sub> hydrogenation, such as CO<sub>2</sub> capture, H<sub>2</sub> prices, and carbon taxes. We hope to inspire new ideas for CO<sub>2</sub> hydrogenation to produce high value-added chemicals through the design of catalysts and the exploration of reaction paths.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 2","pages":"Pages 133-145"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950155523000228/pdfft?md5=6ac4c88db2ccbcf49fefde9829ee4706&pid=1-s2.0-S2950155523000228-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136053573","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-09-13DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.09.004
Yanhua Gao , Tao Song , Xiuling Guo , Yan Zhang , Yong Yang
{"title":"Electronic interaction and oxgen vacancy engineering of g-C3N4/α-Bi2O3 Z-scheme heterojunction for enhanced photocatalytic aerobic oxidative homo-/hetero-coupling of amines to imines in aqueous phase","authors":"Yanhua Gao , Tao Song , Xiuling Guo , Yan Zhang , Yong Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.09.004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.greenca.2023.09.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Photocatalytic oxidation coupling of amines represents a green and cost-effective method for the synthesis of highly value-added imines under visible light irradiation. However, the catalytic efficiency was severely limited by poor visible light response and easy recombination of photogenerated charge carriers. Herein, we report a g-C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>/α-Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> Z-scheme heterojunction via electrostatic self-assembly of g-C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> nanosheets and oxygen-vacancy-rich α-Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> microsphere for visible-light driven oxidative coupling of amines to imines in H<sub>2</sub>O as green solvent at room temperature. Amines with diverse functional groups were efficiently converted into the corresponding imines in good to excellent yields. Impressively, this photocatalytic protocol is applicable for the challenging hetero-coupling of two structurally different amines to construct complicated asymmetric imines, which is the first report of photocatalytic hetero-coupling of amines to imines to our knowledge. Furthermore, the Z-scheme heterojunction also demonstrated high stability and could be readily separated and reused without obvious decay in activity and selectivity. Comprehensive characterizations and control experiments reveal the construction of Z-scheme heterojunction with intimate interface between g-C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> and α-Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> greatly boosts the transfer and separation of photogenerated charge carries and enhances the redox capability. Meanwhile, the surface oxygen vacancies in α-Bi<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> also benefits the separation of photogenerated charge carriers and activation of reactants. These jointly contributed to an enhanced photocatalytic performance for oxidative coupling of amines to imines.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 2","pages":"Pages 105-117"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49891778","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-09-01DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.001
Hongbin Hou , Xuenian Huang , Zhiqiang Du , Jian Guo , Min Wang , Guangqiang Xu , Ce Geng , Yunpeng Zhang , Qinggang Wang , Xuefeng Lu
{"title":"Integration of Biological Synthesis & Chemical Catalysis: Bio-based Plasticizer trans-Aconitates","authors":"Hongbin Hou , Xuenian Huang , Zhiqiang Du , Jian Guo , Min Wang , Guangqiang Xu , Ce Geng , Yunpeng Zhang , Qinggang Wang , Xuefeng Lu","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Plasticizers are essential to reduce processing difficulties and improve plastic properties. However, petroleum-based phthalate plasticizers, which are mostly used at present, urgently require alternatives due to their confirmed and serious health risks. In this study, the green mass production of <em>trans</em>-aconitic acid was achieved via synthetic biotechnology and microbial fermentation, which was further expanded to multiple application scenarios using chemical esterification, resulting in <em>trans</em>-aconitate plasticizers that are biosafe and environmentally friendly and have high plasticizing efficiency and long-term stability. Different plasticizers with various core structures and alkyl chains were studied to determine their properties as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plasticizers, and tributyl <em>trans-</em>aconitate displayed the best comprehensive performance with up to 1.24 plasticizing efficiency. The possible PVC plasticization mechanism with synergistic solvent, support, and shielding effects was discussed and summarized. Tributyl <em>trans</em>-aconitate has significant potential to replace traditional PVC plasticizers in general merchandise, food packaging, medicinal materials, and other products, further promoting the development of the high-quality plastic industry with greener technology and safer applications.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 1","pages":"Pages 20-32"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49704847","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-09-01DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.003
Kai Wang , Yining Liu , Zhuoheng Wu , Yilu Wu , Haoran Bi , Yanhui Liu , Meng Wang , Biqiang Chen , Jens Nielsen , Zihe Liu , Tianwei Tan
{"title":"Investigating formate tolerance mechanisms in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and its application","authors":"Kai Wang , Yining Liu , Zhuoheng Wu , Yilu Wu , Haoran Bi , Yanhui Liu , Meng Wang , Biqiang Chen , Jens Nielsen , Zihe Liu , Tianwei Tan","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Current global energy and environmental crisis have spurred efforts towards developing sustainable biotechnological solutions, such as utilizing CO<sub>2</sub> and its derivatives as raw materials. Formate is an attractive one-carbon source due to its high solubility and low reduction potential. However, the regulatory mechanism of formate metabolism in yeast remains largely unexplored. This study employed adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) to improve formate tolerance in <em>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</em> and characterized the underlying molecular mechanisms. The evolved strain was applied to produce free fatty acids (FFAs) under high concentration of formate with glucose addition. The results showed that the evolved strain achieved a FFAs titer of 250 mg/L. Overall, this study sheds light on the regulatory mechanism of formate tolerance and provides a platform for future studies under high concentration of formate.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 1","pages":"Pages 65-74"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49709465","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-09-01DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.09.003
Robert D. Crapnell , Craig E. Banks
{"title":"Electroanalysis overview: Addressing the green credentials in the use of electroanalytical sensors","authors":"Robert D. Crapnell , Craig E. Banks","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.09.003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.greenca.2023.09.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Electrochemical methodologies provide a wide arsenal of options for analytical sensors, providing a high sensitivity, short analysis time, low-cost, possibility for miniaturization, and are readily portable solutions. One common theme within the literature is the use of the word “green”. The use of this terminology is intended to demonstrate the development of electroanalytical sensing platforms utilizing biodegradable and sustainable materials. In many cases, the claims of “green” electroanalytical platforms is questionable. This minireview looks to address the green credentials that are utilized in the pursuit of electroanalytical sensors, offering insights into future research opportunities.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 1","pages":"Pages 85-93"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49709467","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-09-01DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.002
Chang Chen , Xueli Liu , Renxing Huang , Kuankuan Liu , Shangfa Pan , Junchao Lao , Qi Li , Jun Gao , Lei Jiang
{"title":"Nanofluidic osmotic power generation from CO2 with cellulose membranes","authors":"Chang Chen , Xueli Liu , Renxing Huang , Kuankuan Liu , Shangfa Pan , Junchao Lao , Qi Li , Jun Gao , Lei Jiang","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.greenca.2023.08.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The diffusion of chemical species down concentration gradient is a ubiquitous phenomenon that releases Gibbs free energy. Nanofluidic materials have shown great promise in harvesting the energy from ionic diffusion via the reverse electrodialysis process. In principle, any chemicals that can be converted to ions can be used for nanofluidic power generation. In this work, we demonstrate the power generation from the diffusion of CO<sub>2</sub> into air using nanofluidic cellulose membranes. By dissolving CO<sub>2</sub> in water, a power density of 87 mW/m<sup>2</sup> can be achieved. Using monoethanolamine solutions to dissolve CO<sub>2</sub>, the power density can be increased to 2.6 W/m<sup>2</sup>. We further demonstrate that the waste heat released in the industrial processes and carbon capture processes, etc., can be simultaneously harvested with our nanofluidic membranes, increasing the power density up to 16 W/m<sup>2</sup> under a temperature difference of 30 °C. Therefore, our work should expand the application scope of nanofluidic osmotic power generation and contribute to the carbon utilization and capture technologies.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 1","pages":"Pages 58-64"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49704774","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Green CarbonPub Date : 2023-09-01DOI: 10.1016/j.greenca.2023.06.002
Florian P. Rosenbaum, Volker Müller
{"title":"Moorella thermoacetica: A promising cytochrome- and quinone-containing acetogenic bacterium as platform for a CO2-based bioeconomy","authors":"Florian P. Rosenbaum, Volker Müller","doi":"10.1016/j.greenca.2023.06.002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.greenca.2023.06.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The negative effect of fossil-based industrial processes on the environment, especially the contribution to global warming by emitting greenhouse gases such as CO<sub>2</sub> causes a global threat to mankind. Therefore, technologies are demanded by the society for a sustainable and environmental friendly economy. The biotechnological use of sugar-based feedstocks to produce valuable products are in conflict with, for example, food production. In order to overcome this issue, waste products such as syngas (H<sub>2</sub>, CO and CO<sub>2</sub>) or CO<sub>2</sub> taken from the atmosphere are of increasing interest for biotechnological applications. Acetogenic bacteria are already used at industrial scale to produce sustainable and environmentally friendly biofuels from syngas. A promising candidate due to its physiological flexibility is the thermophilic acetogen <em>Moorella thermoacetica</em>. In contrast to most acetogens <em>M. thermoacetica</em> is not restricted to one energy conserving system. In addition to the Ech complex, cytochromes and quinones maybe involved in energy conservation by, for example, DMSO respiration. The extra energy conserved can be used to form highly valuable but energy demanding products. In this review we give insights into the physiology of this acetogen, the current state of the art of <em>M. thermoacetica</em> as a platform for biotechnological applications and discuss future perspectives.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":100595,"journal":{"name":"Green Carbon","volume":"1 1","pages":"Pages 2-13"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49704914","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}