Developing clean and renewable energy alternatives for the energy grid has been considered a priority for global sustainability. A partnership between the CNPEM and Sinochem Petróleo Brasil, with funding from EMBRAPII, contributed to this agenda by developing enzymatic strategies to produce advanced biofuels along two main lines of activity.

The first involved developing a microbial platform capable of secreting high levels of an enzymatic cocktail optimized for the saccharification of sugarcane bagasse; this new cocktail demonstrated greater hydrolytic activity in sugarcane bagasse compared to a non-optimized strain.

The second line of the project involved developing a biochemical route to produce renewable hydrocarbons. Medium- and long-chain alkanes and alkenes are commercially important because their physical and chemical properties resemble those of conventional fossil fuels. Terminal alkenes are also important chemical foundations to produce polymers, fertilizers, and surfactants with high commercial value. For Sinochem, the partnership with the CNPEM has been very fruitful.

The Center’s technical and management-related competencies, as well as its laboratory infrastructure, were essential for the company to achieve relevant and innovative results within the context of biorefining.

Sinochem notes that the CNPEM team worked to maintain effective and constructive interactions with the company, with high-quality performance, and the joint project promotes advances on two promising topics (Brazil’s potential for biomass use and generation of renewable energy) and addresses technical challenges in line with the global agenda on sustainable development.