Green Carbon co-organizes 17th International Clostridium Conference

http://qibebt.cas.cn/news/zyxw/202409/t20240922_7378447.html

From September 19th to 22nd, the 17th International Clostridium Conference was held in Qingdao, hosted by the International Clostridium Conference Organizing Committee, supported by the Bioenergy Research Laboratory of Qingdao Institute of Energy, the Key Laboratory of Solar Photovoltaic Conversion and Utilization, Shandong Energy Research Institute, and Qingdao New Energy Shandong Provincial Laboratory, and co-organized by the One Carbon Biotechnology Research Center and Green Carbon Editorial Department.

Since 1990, the International Clostridium Conference has been held every two years, and this Clostridium Conference is the second time to be held in China. On the afternoon of the 19th, the executive chairman of the conference, Researcher Li Fuli, director of the One Carbon Biotechnology Research Center, announced the opening of the conference. Director Lv Xuefeng delivered a speech on behalf of the Qingdao Institute of Energy and introduced the construction and development of the institute to the delegates.

This conference invited about 150 scholars and guests from domestic and foreign academic and business circles to attend the conference, including more than 50 foreign experts from Germany, the United States, France, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Italy and other countries. The conference was divided into four parts according to the topic direction: physiology and systems biology, genetics and synthetic biology, metabolic engineering and raw material utilization, industry and new applications. More than 40 oral speakers shared the latest research results with the participants, discussed future research directions, and exchanged problems and challenges encountered in Clostridium research and industrialization engineering.

As a valuable platform for scientific exchange and cooperation, this conference will further promote the development of Clostridium research. At the same time, the successful holding of this conference is of great significance to enhancing the influence of the institute in the field of Clostridium research. (Text/Photo by Ma Xiaoqing)

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QIBEBT-led consortium achieves bacterial degradation of PET bottles to provide terephtalic acid in 97% yield

http://english.qibebt.cas.cn/ne/rp/202502/t20250218_902019.html

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S030438942500353X?via%3Dihub

https://enviromicro-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1751-7915.13580

A research team from the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with Nanjing Tech University and Greifswald University, has introduced an innovative solution for the depolymerization of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). This solution utilizes an engineered whole-cell biocatalyst based on the thermophilic bacterium Clostridium thermocellum.

This study builds on prior work, where the research team first demonstrated the concept of whole-cell catalytic PET depolymerization. In that study, the genetically engineered C. thermocellum expressed leaf compost cutinase (LCC) via a plasmid for high-temperature PET depolymerization.

In this study, the researchers integrated LCC directly into the chromosome of C. thermocellum, ensuring stable enzyme expression. They further enhanced the system by introducing LCC variants and co-expressing hydrophobic modules.

By optimizing reaction conditions and controlling pH, the researchers achieved a significant improvement in PET depolymerization efficiency with minimal accumulation of the intermediate product mono(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate (MHET).

When tested with pretreated PET bottle particles, about 97% of the added PET was converted into terephthalic acid (TPA), a key monomer used in producing new plastics or high-value chemicals. This high level of performance positions the system as a promising green solution for PET recycling.

Additionally, C. thermocellum is naturally capable of degrading cellulose, making it a potential candidate for directly processing mixed textile waste that contains cotton fibers and PET.

An exosceleton for mounting climbing tested at Taishan mountain, Qingdao

http://j.people.com.cn/n3/2025/0207/c517455-20273369.html

https://www.recordchina.co.jp/b948125-s6-c20-d0189.html

During the Chinese New Year holiday, a mountain climbing support robot jointly developed by Taishan Wenlun Group and Shenzhen Kenqi Technology Co. was test-introduced in the Taishan Scenic Area. Guangming reported.

According to Taishan Wenlun Group, the mountain climbing support robot can be used in a wide range of areas in daily life and work, such as mountain climbing, fitness, running, walking, and climbing up and down stairs. It weighs just 1.8 kilograms and is ergonomically designed with power, electronics and artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms. It can sense every movement of the lower limbs and provide support at the right time.

According to the group, it can operate continuously for more than five hours. The product is currently in the trial operation phase, and the company plans to launch 200 units on the market in early March.

A deep-sea salmon farming facility near Qingdao

https://jp.news.cn/20250116/9dc88fa0753f468da2fc4772c53548ec/c.html?page=1

In a large-scale deep sea smart fishery farming facility “Deep Blue 2” in the Qingdao National Deep Sea and Ocean Green Aquaculture Test Area, approximately 400,000 salmon are farmed in farming cages, with a high survival rate and healthy growth.

According to Gu Qihuan, production manager at Shandong Caijing Wanzefeng Marine Technology Co., Ltd., salmon farming requires strict environmental conditions, and it is very difficult to find suitable sea areas for large-scale farming. However, this location is home to 130,000 square kilometers of Yellow Sea cold water mass, and the water temperature in summer is 10 to 16 degrees Celsius, which is very suitable for salmon growth. Deep Blue 2 sinks to the level of the cold water mass less than 30 meters in summer and rises to the surface again in winter.

Deep Blue 2 is 71.5 meters high, 70 meters in diameter, and has a fully submerged farming area of 90,000 cubic meters. It is equipped with multiple smart farming equipment such as an automatic feeding system and an underwater photography system, making unmanned farming in the deep sea and distant ocean possible.

For harvest, schools of salmon are sucked up one after another onto work boats, passed through a fish-water separator, and transported to a workshop for processing. Workers place the salmon in insulated boxes filled with ice and transport them to land overnight for processing and sale.

The freshly caught salmon weigh an average of 3-4 kilograms each, and each harvest is about 5,000 fish. At the earliest, they can be delivered to major cities in China in just over 30 hours.

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