FLEXIZYME

Construction of a FLEXIble and adaptable enZYMatic biotechnological platform for sustainablE industrial production of biobased fatty amines from side stream materials 

With a projected market growth of over €5.54 billion by 2027, fatty amines are essential components in numerous industries, including cosmetic products, detergents, and agriculture. However, traditional methods of fatty amines production suffer from drawbacks, such as high energy consumption, toxic catalysts, and environmental concerns.  

FLEXIZYME aims to revolutionise fatty amines production through biotechnological innovation and sustainable practices by pioneering a biotechnological platform that utilises fat- and protein-rich residues as feedstocks. This approach not only mitigates environmental impact, but it also contributes to a circular economy by repurposing waste materials.  

One of the key solutions proposed by FLEXIZYME is the use of advanced enzymes, leveraging cutting-edge bioinformatic tools and artificial intelligence to optimise processes. This approach offers advantages over traditional methods, such as higher selectivity, milder reaction conditions, and reduced energy consumption, and it also enables enzymes to be derived from renewable sources and tailored for specific reactions, thereby enhancing overall efficiency and sustainability.

Activities

FLEXIZYME integrates the chemo/enzymatic approach, enzyme engineering, and machine learning into a biotechnological fatty amines platform, ensuring productivity, robustness, and environmental performance. Through stakeholder collaboration and assessment adherence, the project aims to: 

• Develop a flexible and adaptable biotechnological platform, integrating cutting-edge technologies and interdisciplinary innovation to optimise biocatalyst engineering, reactor design, and process optimisation. 
• Develop biotechnological processes with improved efficiency and scalability for Fatty Acid synthesis. 
• Enhance cost-effectiveness and engineer enzymes to overcome limitations in industrial biotechnological processes. 
• Develop an integrated process design and real-time monitoring system for the enzymatic synthesis of fatty amines. 
• Address technical challenges in scaling up and validating biotechnological processes under real product/process conditions. 
• Validate the biotechnological platform at an industrial scale in the cosmetic, detergent, and agricultural sectors through case studies and industrial implementation. 
• Conduct techno-economic assessment and life cycle assessment to evaluate the economic and environmental performance of the overall process. 
• Foster interdisciplinary collaboration, knowledge sharing, and dissemination of project outcomes to drive innovation and industrial implementation in the biotechnological sector through workshops, reports, training, networking, and publications. 

• Involvement in the development of the downstream process for the maximisation of fatty amines recovery
• Scale-up of the holistic process for maximised product recovery 

PARTNERS

• ITENE, ES (Coordinator) 
• COREYSA, ES  
• Keuken & de Koning BV, NL
• Rhodia Laboratoire du Futur  Pessac, FR  
• CERTH, GR   
• National Technical University Athens (NTUA), GR
• CSIC, ES  
• Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant, BE  
• LIPSA, ES  
• Universita di Pisa, Italy  
• Proionta Gis Voiou Anonymus Viomichaniki Emporiki Etaireia Kozani, GR  
• University of Groningen, NL  
• CluBE, GR  
• GECCO Biotech, NL  
• Lavantia nature, ES  
• ENCO SRL  Napoli, Italy  
• Syensco, FR  
• Process Design Center, NL  
• ROELMI HPC, IT 

SUPPORTED by

The project is supported by the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking and its members.

  

 

Disclaimer Art 17.3. Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CBE JU. Neither the European Union, nor CBE JU can be held responsible for them.