Dr. Tan Jian Ping & Team Publish in Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering
The Research and Postgraduate Centre congratulates Tey Ker Yee, Asst. Prof. Dr. Mong Guo Ren, Assoc. Prof. Ts. Dr. Vincent Woon Kok Sin, Asst. Prof. Dr. Tan Jian Ping, from the School of Energy and Chemical Engineering, Prof. Dr. Yeap Swee Keong from the China-ASEAN College of Marine Sciences (CAMS), XMUM, for publishing in Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering.
The Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering is an SCI Q1 journal that specializes in the publication of original and innovative research related to the development of advanced, safe, green, and sustainable environmental technologies, which aims to contribute to the advancement of a carbon-neutral, circular, and self-sufficient bio-based economy. Its latest impact factor is 7.4.
Titled “Fibrous oil palm frond as a potential microbial immobilization carrier for enhanced 1,3-propanediol productivity”, this research is supported by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation Malaysia (MOSTI) under Technology Development Fund 1 (TeD 1) Project “TDF07211418”. It is also supported by Xiamen University Malaysia Research Fund (XMUMRF) Project “XMUMRF/2022-C10/IENG/0047” and “XMUMRF/2023- C12/IENG/0060”.
In line with Sustainable Development Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, the biotransformation of crude glycerol into 1,3-propanediol establishes a circular bioeconomy by converting regional crude glycerol into value-added green polymers. The technical article highlights the immobilization of locally isolated Clostridium butyricum JKT 37 on coconut shell activated carbon (CSAC), granular durian peel (GDP), or fibrous oil palm frond (FOPF) to ferment crude glycerol for the production of 1,3-propanediol. Superior cell adsorption on FOPF was supported by its high water absorption index (4.16 g/g) and morphology. The GDP immobilizer exhibited a higher immobilized cell density (9.20 g/L) and cell retention (0.18 g/g) than CSAC, although it showed no significant improvement in 1,3-propanediol production. The biological activity of the immobilized cells on FOPF was validated in 12-cycle repeated batch fermentations, achieving a 1,3-PDO yield and productivity as high as 0.68 mol/mol and 1.43 g/L·h, respectively.
This research demonstrates the high performance of the fibrous immobilizer and serves as a benchmark for future investigations into the use of agricultural waste to enhance the productivity of other bioprocesses.
This article can be found at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2024.114000
