Fermentation for Nylon
Introduction of Nylon Biosynthesis
Polyamide (PA), commonly known as nylon, has a backbone consisting of repeating units of diamines and dicarboxylic acids containing different numbers of carbon atoms, and has been widely used in pharmaceutical, textile, electronics, automotive, and engineering plastics industries. Polyamides are usually produced from fossil monomers by chemical synthesis, but this traditional method causes environmental pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, nylon monomer biosynthesis using renewable raw materials has a promising application as a green and safe production method.
Fermentation production of bio-based nylon monomers
Metabolic engineering of production strains has made it possible to synthesize the required polyamide monomers from natural amino acids. For example, 1,5-diaminopentane (DAP), a nitrogenous base with a wide range of activity in living organisms, serves as an important monomer for bio-based polyamides and is a precursor of nylon PA5X. DAP can be biosynthesized in host microorganisms by enzymatic transformation of L-lysine, and the host strains are mainly modified by the traditional L-lysine producing bacteria C. glutamicum and E. coli.
The design and improvement of host strains and the production of an increasing number of chemicals and materials by fermentation from low-cost renewable sources opens up new possibilities for the production of nylon biopolymers. The fermentation development and downstream purification of nylon monomers, fermentation process optimization, and condensation of bio-based monomers is a sustainable value chain from the utilization of renewable resources to the development of novel bio-based nylons.
Our Services for Fermentation Production of Nylon
Strain selection and improvement
Construction of production strains by genetic engineering. Introduction of all modifications into the genome of the host strain, construction, purification and analysis of plasmid DNA, and transformation of the engineered strain.
Biotransformation
Heterologous expression of enzymes in the host strain, followed by enzymatic reaction to convert the substrate to the target compound. For example, L-lysine is converted to DAP by the action of lysine decarboxylase.
Fermentation and downstream process development
Pre-culture in shake flasks is performed in the laboratory, and cells from the pre-cultures are inoculated into the medium for large-scale fermentation, and the fermentation process is monitored and controlled online.
Downstream processes such as membrane separation technology and chromatography are used to isolate and purify the target compounds. Cells and macromolecules are intercepted by membranes and separated from target nylon monomer such as DAP. The fermentation broth is passed through an adsorption column containing ultra-high cross-linked resin, DAP is adsorbed, and impurities are removed by washing.
Nylon monomer analysis
To quantify the fermentation product nylon monomer such as DAP, the supernatant is obtained by centrifugation and subsequent filtration and then the DAP concentration can be determined by HPLC. To analyze its purity, it can be detected using a gas chromatograph and flame ionization detector.
Monomer polycondensation and polymer analysis
The nylon monomer diamino compounds obtained from the fermentation are reacted with the dicarboxylic acid compounds by condensation to form polyamides. The polymers are characterized and analyzed for concentration, viscosity, water absorption, refractive index, etc.
Why Choose BOC Sciences?
- Full range of services from fermentation to synthesis, from small to large molecules
- State-of-the-art facilities and sterile products
- Complete quality management system with ISO 9001 certification
- Patented and proprietary manufacturing methods
- Lowest production costs
