Green Innovation: ETH Zurich's Novel Approach to Reducing Chemical Industry’s Carbon Footprint

ETH Zurich’s E. coli Solution Marks a Milestone in Green Chemistry

The chemical industry is a major fossil fuel consumer and CO2 emitter, with around 925 million metric tons of CO2 released in 2021, according to McKinsey & Company. Researchers at ETH Zurich are addressing this issue by using methanol instead of crude oil for producing plastics and other products, alongside using E.coli bacteria to convert methanol into sustainable products, which offer a greener alternative to traditional methods. 
 

While E. coli is often associated with infections, it's a well-established tool in bioproduction. The bacterium is widely used to produce recombinant proteins such as growth hormone and insulin in pharma industries. Michael Reiter and his Researchers at ETH Zurich are now exploring its use in converting methanol into valuable products and have successfully produced four key compounds using the E.coli method such as lactic acid, polyhydroxybutyrate, itaconic acid, and p-aminobenzoic acid. These compounds have significant market potential for polymer production and can be used to make a variety of items, including beverage cups, plastic cutlery, paints, and synthetic fibers.

Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a small chain of monomers used to create longer polymers more efficiently and p-aminobenzoic acid, features a carbon ring structure that makes it valuable for pharmaceuticals, dyes, and skincare products. The successful production of these four compounds marks the initial step toward commercializing the technology, though it's still in the proof-of-principle stage. Reiter explained that their goal is to demonstrate a versatile platform for creating a wide range of chemical products using engineered E. coli. Each cell acts as a "tiny machine" to convert methanol into climate-neutral products, and scaling up involves replicating these cells to handle larger volumes of methanol.

While many natural organisms can consume methanol, they are not well understood and used in industrial processes. So instead of understanding new microorganisms better, researchers chose to modify familiar E. coli to utilize methanol. Training E. coli for this purpose was challenging, requiring nearly a decade of rigorous lab work to move from initial concept to successful implementation. Professor Julia Vorholt expressed surprise at how effectively the engineered E. coli converted methanol into desired products, noting that the results exceeded expectations and providing confidence in future applications. Timothy Bradley, a PhD student at ETH Zurich, mentioned that their current efforts focus on understanding the metabolic changes in E. coli that enable it to use methanol, to enhance the overall efficiency of the process.
 

Achieving a significant scale will require a deeper understanding of the genetic changes that enable E. coli to utilize methanol effectively and optimize its metabolism for greater efficiency. The research team has received a Swiss government grant to develop applications and commercialize the technology. They plan to spin out a company within the year to produce initial products and scale up over the next 5 to 10 years while engaging with chemical industry players for potential partnerships. For manufacturers, shifting away from fossil fuels could have significant climate, geopolitical, and economic impacts due to the availability of new, diverse domestic feedstocks. Green methanol, which can be sourced from waste or sequestered carbon, is a promising candidate. The ETH Zurich team is optimistic that this emerging alternative could lead to the production of chemicals with reduced or even zero carbon footprints.

Editor's Note:

ETH Zurich researchers have pioneered a method to significantly lower the chemical industry’s carbon footprint by utilizing E.coli as a bio tool. This bacterium significantly changes methanol into sustainable products and the innovative approach, which has been in development for nearly a decade, represents a promising shift from crude oil to greener feedstocks. It offers potential not only for climate-neutral chemical production but also for a broader range of sustainable materials. This development could generate more environmentally friendly industrial practices and contribute to a reduction in global carbon emissions. 

Skoobuzz congratulates the ETH Zurich team for this outstanding initiative, which will reduce the carbon footprint to nearly zero.