Sustainable biofuel for the future

The Bio2Fuel project provides ambitious, innovative research that catalyzes radical technological progress to accelerate the generation of long-term renewable energy, based on bacteria and green biomass. We aim to be the first in the world to develop and demonstrate high-volume, efficient production of the biofuel bio-butyric acid, the GF-2 product, in bacteria in pre-industrial scale fermentation reactors. GF-2 is highly in demand globally. Therefore, Bio2Fuel aims to put Norway as a pioneer and leading country internationally in the green production of this highly desired bioenergy product. To achieve this goal, Bio2Fuel will employ a mix of bacterial strains in an advanced and optimized fermentation bioprocess, using green biomass as the carbon source. This will contribute to the overproduction of butyric acid in high concentrations and become an innovative solution for green product production that is economically competitive over the current chemical synthesis based production. Therefore, we shall primarily optimize selected bacterial strains to produce increased GF-2 titers and increase their tolerance to product toxicity. Thus, optimized strains together with advanced fermentation systems will strongly contribute to reduced production price for GF-2. Importantly, Bio2Fuel will also establish innovative fermentation approaches utilizing GF-2 as a feeding stock to upgrade production of biofuel product bio-butanol (termed GF-1), that supports sustainable energy production goals in a circular economy-based manner. Taken together, Bio2Fuel project thereby has the ambition to create a new value chain that will benefit the bioenergy industry. Thereby, Bio2Fuel will facilitate efficient, cost-effective and economically competitive pre-industrial scale production of butyric acid as a platform chemical for production of biofuels, relevant for agriculture, ships (sustainable maritime fuel, SMF) and long flights (sustainable aviation fuel, SAF).

The Bio2Fuel project provides novel, ambitious, innovative research that catalyzes radical technological breakthroughs to accelerate the generation of long-term renewable energy sustainability. We aim to be the first in the world to develop and demonstrate high-volume, efficient production of the bio-butyric acid GF-2 product in selected bacteria in pre-industrial scale fermentation reactors. GF-2 is highly in demand globally. Therefore, Bio2Fuel aims to establish Norway as a pioneer and leading country internationally in the green production of this highly desired bioenergy product. To achieve this goal, Bio2Fuel will exploit novel, robust, synergistic engineered bacterial strains and microbial communities in an advanced and optimized fermentation bioprocess. This will in turn contribute to the overproduction of butyric acid in high concentrations and become innovative solution for green product production that is economically competitive over current chemical synthesis based production. Therefore, we shall primarily optimize C. tyrobutyricum strains to produce increased GF-2 titers, eliminate sporulation and increase their tolerance to product toxicity. Thus, optimized strains together with advanced continuous batch/fed-batch fermentation systems will strongly contribute to reduced production price for GF-2. Importantly, Bio2Fuel will also establish innovative fermentation approaches utilizing GF-2 as a feeding stock to develop novel technology to upgrade production of biofuel product termed GF-1 (bio-butanol), that supports sustainable energy production goals in a circular economy-based manner. Taken together, Bio2Fuel project thereby has the ambition to create a new value chain that will benefit the bioenergy and biochemical's industry in general and in particular, will facilitate efficient, cost-effective and economically competitive pre-industrial scale production of butyric acid as a platform chemical for production of biofuels, such as bio-SMF and bio-SAF.