New Phototrophic Factories
for Resource Recovery
Joana C. Fradinho, Virgínia C. F. Carvalho, and Maria A. M. Reis
Abstract
Human activities are threatening the environment. Pollutants are spread across
the ecosystems damaging the biological diversity and human health. New
sustainable practices must be brought forward and phototrophic organisms may
contribute to overcome such complex challenge. Enclosed on these living
organisms are a multitude of enzymes and metabolic pathways that act as a unit
providing solutions to each environmental scenario. Phototrophic systems have
been explored for their capability of recovering carbon, nitrogen, and
phosphorous from the most diverse wastewater streams enabling water
reutilization and the production of value-added products. And all simply using
sunlight as their energy source. This chapter will provide an overview of the
diversity of phototrophic organisms and elucidate on current phototrophic
technologies that aim the prevention and mitigation of environmental pollution,
acting on wastewater treatment and resource recovery. Two case studies will be
detailed, one regarding phosphorous recovery with a photo-enhanced biological
phosphorus removal system, and other regarding carbon recovery in the form of
polyhydroxyalkanoates, a biodegradable polymer produced in purple phototrophic bacteria ponds. These innovative photosynthetic factories address
society’s request for sustainable practices where waste is no longer the end of a
production line, but instead, a fundamental and integrated element of the circular
economy.
J. C. Fradinho (&) Á V. C. F. Carvalho Á M. A. M. Reis
REQUIMTE, UCIBIO, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Campus de Caparica,
Caparica, Portugal
e-mail: j.fradinho@fct.unl.pt
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
J. J. G. Moura et al. (eds.), Enzymes for Solving Humankind's Problems,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58315-6_13
413
for Resource Recovery
Joana C. Fradinho, Virgínia C. F. Carvalho, and Maria A. M. Reis
Abstract
Human activities are threatening the environment. Pollutants are spread across
the ecosystems damaging the biological diversity and human health. New
sustainable practices must be brought forward and phototrophic organisms may
contribute to overcome such complex challenge. Enclosed on these living
organisms are a multitude of enzymes and metabolic pathways that act as a unit
providing solutions to each environmental scenario. Phototrophic systems have
been explored for their capability of recovering carbon, nitrogen, and
phosphorous from the most diverse wastewater streams enabling water
reutilization and the production of value-added products. And all simply using
sunlight as their energy source. This chapter will provide an overview of the
diversity of phototrophic organisms and elucidate on current phototrophic
technologies that aim the prevention and mitigation of environmental pollution,
acting on wastewater treatment and resource recovery. Two case studies will be
detailed, one regarding phosphorous recovery with a photo-enhanced biological
phosphorus removal system, and other regarding carbon recovery in the form of
polyhydroxyalkanoates, a biodegradable polymer produced in purple phototrophic bacteria ponds. These innovative photosynthetic factories address
society’s request for sustainable practices where waste is no longer the end of a
production line, but instead, a fundamental and integrated element of the circular
economy.
J. C. Fradinho (&) Á V. C. F. Carvalho Á M. A. M. Reis
REQUIMTE, UCIBIO, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Campus de Caparica,
Caparica, Portugal
e-mail: j.fradinho@fct.unl.pt
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
J. J. G. Moura et al. (eds.), Enzymes for Solving Humankind's Problems,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58315-6_13
413