Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
Journals
Methane
Special Issues
Trends in Methane-Based Biotechnology
share announcement

Special Issue "Trends in Methane-Based Biotechnology"

A special issue of Methane (ISSN 2674-0389).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2024 | Viewed by 1807

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Yadira Rodríguez

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Sustainable Processes, Universidad de Valladolid, Valladolid, Spain
Interests: biorefinery; gas-to-product conversion; mass transfer; methane; polyhydroxyalkanoates; resource utilization
Dr. Juan Carlos López

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
GENIA Bioenergy, Valencia, Spain
Interests: biorefinery; gas fermentation; methane; carbon dioxide; biopolymers; waste valorisation
Dr. Maximilian Lackner
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Applied Sciences Technikum Wien, Hoechstaedtplatz 6, 1200 Vienna, Austria
Interests: gas fermentation; single cell protein; biopolymers; polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB); polyhydroxyalkaoates (PHA); climate change mitigation and adaptation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In a global context of increasing climate emergency and energy demand, the use of methane (the second most prevalent anthropogenic greenhouse gas) as a resource can play a crucial role not only in combating global warming but also in the transition towards a climate-neutral society. The development of an integrated biorefinery for the generation of bio-compounds of interest from methane-laden waste emissions has recently emerged as an opportunity to address the mitigation of (uncontrolled) GHG emissions along with the reduction in todays’ global dependence on fossil fuels, or other contemporary challenges such as plastic pollution or food scarcity. In this context, methane-utilizing cell factories are envisioned as a promising platform for the bioconversion of the CH4 fraction into green chemicals such as polyhydroxyalkanoates, single-cell protein, biofuels, or platform chemicals. In the particular case of the biogas industry, this biorefinery concept opens up a new window in terms of economic sustainability and the promotion of biogas industry growth, untapping its enormous potential and environmental benefits.

This Special Issue intends to cover all the relevant aspects and recent achievements in methane recovery, treatment and utilization, the latter with a particular focus on methane bioconversion into high value-added chemicals.

Potential topics may include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Microbial cycling of methane
  • Advances in pathway/metabolic engineering
  • Methane abatement biotechnologies
  • Methane to (bio)products (bio)catalysis
  • Case studies in methane bioconversion

Dr. Yadira Rodríguez
Dr. Juan Carlos López
Dr. Maximilian Lackner
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Methane is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bio-molecules
  • bioconversion
  • gas fermentation
  • greenhouse gases mitigation
  • gas-liquid mass transfer
  • methane biorefinery
  • methanotrophic bacteria

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

get_app
Article
Exploring the Potential of Methanotrophs for Plant Growth Promotion in Rice Agriculture
by
Jyoti A. Mohite
,
Kumal Khatri
,
Kajal Pardhi
,
Shubha S. Manvi
,
Rutuja Jadhav
,
Shilpa Rathod
and
Monali C. Rahalkar
Methane 2023, 2(4), 361-371; https://doi.org/10.3390/methane2040024 - 27 Sep 2023
Viewed by 174
Abstract
Rice fields are one of the important anthropogenic sources of methane emissions. Methanotrophs dwelling near the rice roots and at the oxic–anoxic interface of paddy fields can oxidize a large fraction of the generated methane and are therefore considered to be important. Nitrogen [...] Read more.
Rice fields are one of the important anthropogenic sources of methane emissions. Methanotrophs dwelling near the rice roots and at the oxic–anoxic interface of paddy fields can oxidize a large fraction of the generated methane and are therefore considered to be important. Nitrogen fixation in rice root-associated methanotrophs is well known. Our aim in this study was to explore the potential of methanotrophs as bio-inoculants for rice and the studies were performed in pot experiments in monsoon. Ten indigenously isolated methanotrophs were used belonging to eight diverse genera of Type Ia, Type Ib, and Type II methanotrophs, including the newly described genera and/or species, Methylocucumis oryzae and Methylolobus aquaticus, as well as Ca. Methylobacter oryzae and Ca. Methylobacter coli. Additionally, two consortia (Methylomonas strains and Methylocystis-Methylosinus strains) were used. Nitrogen fixation pathways or nifH genes were detected in all of the used methanotrophs. Plant growth promotion (PGPR) was seen in terms of increased plant height and grain yield. Nine out of twelve (seven single strains and two consortia) showed positive effects on grain yield (6–38%). The highest increase in grain yield was seen after inoculation with Ca. Methylobacter coli (38%) followed by Methylomonas consortium (35%) and Methylocucumis oryzae (31%). Methylomagnum ishizawai inoculated plants showed the highest plant height. Methylocucumis oryzae inoculated plants showed early flowering, grain formation, and grain maturation (~17–18 days earlier). In all the pot experiments, minimal quantities of nitrogen fertilizer were used with no additional organic fertilizer inputs. The present study demonstrated the possibility of developing methanotrophs as bio-inoculants for rice agriculture, which would promote plant growth under low inputs of nitrogenous fertilizers. Although the effect of methanotrophs on methane mitigation is still under investigation, their application to reduce methane emissions from rice fields could be an added advantage. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Trends in Methane-Based Biotechnology)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

get_app
Review
Methane Oxidation via Chemical and Biological Methods: Challenges and Solutions
by
Dipayan Samanta
and
Rajesh K. Sani
Methane 2023, 2(3), 279-303; https://doi.org/10.3390/methane2030019 - 19 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1131
Abstract
Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, has gained significant attention due to its environmental impact and economic potential. Chemical industries have focused on specialized catalytic systems, like zeolites, to convert methane into methanol. However, inherent limitations in selectivity, irreversibility, and pore blockages result in [...] Read more.
Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, has gained significant attention due to its environmental impact and economic potential. Chemical industries have focused on specialized catalytic systems, like zeolites, to convert methane into methanol. However, inherent limitations in selectivity, irreversibility, and pore blockages result in high costs and energy requirements, thus hindering their commercial viability and profitability. In contrast, biological methane conversion using methanotrophs has emerged as a promising alternative, offering higher conversion rates, self-renewability, improved selectivity, and economically feasible upstream processes. Nevertheless, biological methane oxidation encounters challenges including the difficulty in cultivating methanotrophs and their slow growth rates, which hinder large-scale bioprocessing. Another highlighted limitation is the limited mass transfer of methane into liquid in bioreactors. Practical strategies to enhance methane oxidation in biological systems, including optimizing reactor design to improve mass transfer, altering metal concentrations, genetic engineering of methane monooxygenases, enzyme encapsulation, and utilizing microbial consortia are discussed. By addressing the limitations of chemical approaches and highlighting the potential of biological methods, the review concluded that the utilization of genetically engineered methanotrophic biofilms on beads within a biotrickling reactor, along with enhanced aeration rates, will likely enhance methane oxidation and subsequent methane conversion rates. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Trends in Methane-Based Biotechnology)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop