Sustainable production of second generation biocellulose and its green technology applications

Abstract

Commonly, biocellulose was harvested from trees and cotton. However, Acetobacter xylinum, a gram-negative bacteria was discovered as being the microorganism capable of producing biocellulose by fermentation. This first generation of biocellulose is widely known as Nata whereby in Malaysia, this biocellulose was only produced as a dessert by food industries. However, there are some excellent properties of biocellulose make it able to be used in many fields. The modified biocellulose used for application other than dessert is defined as second generation biocellulose. This work aims to transfer the technology of a modified method for producing the second generation of biocellulose from bacteria. In this program, the designed Rotary Discs Reactor was being introduced to the company as a new method for biocellulose production. Efforts will be made with the help of the company to optimize and upscale the Rotary Discs Reactor for high production yield of biocellulose. This includes support for the expertise in fabricating, instrumentation, space and operational aspects. The biocellulose produced were further processed into a film for heavy metal removal in wastewater and powder as an additive in cement materials. This cooperation leads to a profitable outcome for the company by 30% improvement in the production rate of biocellulose compared to conventional static fermentation (tray methods) and opens for new applications of biocellulose. On the other hand, the company, university, and students gain benefits from sharing knowledge, facilities, intellectual properties, expertise, increase networking and at the same time enhance the graduate attributes for a future working environment.