The objective of this project, upPP.2, is to continue this research to optimize this biotechnological recycling process of polypropylene waste to obtain medium and short-chain alkanes (10-50 carbons) that can be used as high-value products. added in the chemical industry (fuels, apolar solvents, anticorrosive lubricants), or be transformed into “building blocks” of interest in the cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and aroma industries, and in the manufacture of bioplastics. To this end, the aim is to achieve: i) the optimization of the PP modification and pretreatment routes in such a way that they favour enzymatic attack to the maximum and, at the same time, are economically and environmentally viable for future industrial scaling ii) the development of optimized variants of the enzymes that allow working at higher temperatures and pH ranges to obtain maximum performance in enzymatic depolymerization reactions iii) optimization of the enzyme-PP interaction processes through the optimal conditions of temperature and pH of the reaction medium, as well as the redox mediator or combination thereof to obtain the maximum performance in the enzymatic depolymerization reactions.

Reference project 2021.08.CT01.000019, grant of 128.641,25 Euros, with co-financing of up to 80% (102.913,00 Euros) from the FEDER global grant.