Heat-fueled enzymatic cascade for selective oxyfunctionalization of hydrocarbons

Heat-fueled enzymatic cascade for selective oxyfunctionalization of hydrocarbons

Yoon, Jaeho (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)
Jang, Hanhwi (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)
Oh, Min Wook (Hanbat National University, Daejeon)
Hilberath, T. (TU Delft BT/Biocatalysis)
Hollmann, F. (TU Delft BT/Biocatalysis)
Jung, Yeon Sik (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)
Park, Chan Beum (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)

2022

Heat is a fundamental feedstock, where more than 80% of global energy comes from fossil-based heating process. However, it is mostly wasted due to a lack of proper techniques of utilizing the low-quality waste heat (<100 °C). Here we report thermoelectrobiocatalytic chemical conversion systems for heat-fueled, enzyme-catalyzed oxyfunctionalization reactions. Thermoelectric bismuth telluride (Bi₂Te₃) directly converts low-temperature waste heat into chemical energy in the form of H₂O₂ near room temperature. The streamlined reaction scheme (e.g., water, heat, enzyme, and thermoelectric material) promotes enantio- and chemo-selective hydroxylation and epoxidation of representative substrates (e.g., ethylbenzene, propylbenzene, tetralin, cyclohexane, cis-β-methylstyrene), achieving a maximum total turnover number of rAaeUPO (TTN_rAaeUPO) over 32000. Direct conversion of vehicle exhaust heat into the enantiopure enzymatic product with a rate of 231.4 μM h⁻¹ during urban driving envisions the practical feasibility of thermoelectrobiocatalysis.

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:aa085d5c-fc49-4260-8285-78c5656638eb

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-31363-8

2041-1723

Nature Communications, 13 (1)

Institutional Repository

journal article

© 2022 Jaeho Yoon, Hanhwi Jang, Min Wook Oh, T. Hilberath, F. Hollmann, Yeon Sik Jung, Chan Beum Park