Chestnut Wood Residues, with and Without Tannins, as a Potential Feedstock for PHA Bioplastic Production
Author(s)
Date Issued
2026
Type
article
Volume
18
Issue
10
Start Page
1
End Page
15
ISSN
2073-4360
Journal
Abstract
The valorisation of lignocellulosic residues into bio-based feedstocks is a key strategy for
advancing circular bioeconomy models. In this study, chestnut wood residues, including
virgin wood (VW) and detannized wood (DT) from the tannin industry, were evaluated as
substrates for polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production using Cupriavidus necator. Biomass
was subjected to thermo-acid hydrolysis followed by ion-exchange detoxification, yielding
hydrolysates rich in organic acids (levulinic, acetic, and formic acids) and residual
inhibitory compounds. Both substrates supported microbial growth and PHA accumulation,
although clear differences in performance were observed. The maximum biomass
concentration reached 1.26 ± 0.01 g L−1 in VW hydrolysate and 0.40 ± 0.03 g L−1 in DT
hydrolysate. PHA production was higher in VW hydrolysate, reaching 68.51 mg L−1
with 5.44% (w/w) accumulation, while DT hydrolysate yielded 0.21 mg L−1 with 6.01%
(w/w). The reduced biomass formation in DT hydrolysate was associated with the greater
persistence of inhibitory compounds generated during thermo-acid treatment. Although
the obtained PHA yields are lower than those reported for optimized lignocellulosic systems,
this study demonstrates for the first time the feasibility of producing PHA from
chestnut wood residues, including industrial detannized byproducts, without nutrient
supplementation. These findings highlight the potential of tannin-industry waste streams
as alternative feedstocks for biopolymer production, while indicating that optimization of
hydrolysis conditions, detoxification efficiency, and fermentation strategy is required to
improve process performance.
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Checksum (MD5)
4975f44f6aa1a8c082e231578e639b43
Project(s)
This research was conducted within the framework of Project ECS 0000025 Rome Technopole–CUP B83C22002820006, PNRR Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.5, funded by the European Union–NextGenerationEU