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Biotechnology

Innovation is crucial to fulfil the potential of industrial biotechnology for sustainable production of fuels, chemicals, materials, food and feed. Similarly, scientific and technological advances in environmental biotechnology are needed to enable novel approaches to water purification, and ‘waste-to-product’ processes thus contributing to a circular economy. Increased fundamental knowledge encompassing enzymes, microorganisms and processes are essential for progress in this field. The Department of Biotechnology covers this research area and, based on new insights, selects, designs and tests new biobased catalysts, micro-organisms, and processes.

The department encompasses five research sections:

Section Biocatalysis

Principal Investigators

Kristina Djanashvili

Peter-Leon Hagedoorn

Duncan McMillan

Section Industrial Microbiology

Principal Investigators

Jean-Marc Daran

Pascale Daran-Lapujade

Walter van Gulik

Rinke van Tatenhove-Pel

Section Environmental Biotechnology

Principal Investigators

Damir Brdjanovic

Rebeca Gonzalez Cabaleiro

Robbert Kleerebezem

Mark van Loosdrecht

Cristian Picioreanu

Hans Vrouwenvelder

David Weissbrodt

Section Bioprocess Engineering

Principal Investigators

Ludovic Jourdin

Adrie Straathof

Luuk van der Wielen

Section Biotechnology and Society

Principal Investigators

Patricia Osseweijer

Vacancies

Vacancies can be found at the TU Delft vacancies website.

Zero Emission Biotechnology

Research program

Lab Infrastructure BT

News

23 November 2017

A biological approach to using waste gases

Science funding body NWO-TTW and partners in industry are investing EUR 3.8 million in a consortium that will use micro-organisms to convert syngas into useful chemical building blocks in a sustainable way. By doing so, the consortium intends to contribute to the circular economy and reduce CO2 emissions.

26 May 2017

Newly discovered ‘Siberian’ soda lake micro-organisms convert organic material directly into methane

Researchers from Delft and Moscow have discovered a new class of micro-organisms in Siberian soda lakes. These organisms grow in sodium carbonate brines with a pH 10 and convert methyl group of organic material into methane gas. On xxday May yyth they, together with colleagues from the US, UK, Germany and Spain, report on their findings in Nature Microbiology.

07 April 2016

Two ERC Advanced Grants for TU Delft researchers

Two TU Delft researchers have been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant. Yuli Nazarov and Jack Pronk will both receive this European grant, which is only awarded to five-year projects conducted by internationally established research leaders. Higher-dimensional topological solids realized with multi-terminal superconducting junctions Prof. Yuli Nazarov of the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience (Applied Sciences) will receive an ERC Advanced Grant of €1.5 million for his research proposal on HITSUPERJU (Higher-dimensional topological solids realized with multi-terminal superconducting junctions). His project focuses on topological materials: materials that exhibit the properties of conductors and insulators simultaneously in certain states. Topological materials were only discovered relatively recently, and they have since become a hot topic in the world of solid-state physics. These exotic materials are fundamentally interesting and also hold promise for concrete applications (such as a quantum computer based on Majorana fermions). However, they are very difficult to prepare and control. Yet some properties of topological materials can be closely simulated using a multi-terminal superconducting junction. Nazarov will put together a team of theorists to investigate this and formulate concrete suggestions for experiments and applications. Eliminating Oxygen Requirements in Yeasts Prof. Jack Pronk of the Department of Biotechnology (Applied Sciences) will receive an ERC Advanced Grant of €2.5 million to conduct research on the oxygen requirements of yeasts and fungi. The project, entitled ELOXY (Eliminating Oxygen Requirements in Yeasts), aims to shed light on the as yet unanswered question of why many yeasts and fungi need molecular oxygen. Even when these micro- organisms can obtain plenty of energy from anaerobic fermentation processes, they still need small amounts of oxygen - and nobody knows why. This conundrum is not only of scientific interest, but is also relevant for large-scale application of yeasts and fungi in anaerobic industrial processes.

News

13 April 2023

13 April 2023

100th waste treatment plant using TU Delft's Nereda technology built in Florida

Section Biocatalysis

Principal Investigators

Kristina Djanashvili

Peter-Leon Hagedoorn

Duncan McMillan

Section Industrial Microbiology

Principal Investigators

Jean-Marc Daran

Pascale Daran-Lapujade

Walter van Gulik

Rinke van Tatenhove-Pel

Section Environmental Biotechnology

Principal Investigators

Damir Brdjanovic

Rebeca Gonzalez Cabaleiro

Robbert Kleerebezem

Mark van Loosdrecht

Cristian Picioreanu

Hans Vrouwenvelder

David Weissbrodt

Section Bioprocess Engineering

Principal Investigators

Ludovic Jourdin

Adrie Straathof

Luuk van der Wielen

Section Biotechnology and Society

Principal Investigators

Patricia Osseweijer

Vacancies

Vacancies can be found at the TU Delft vacancies website.

Zero Emission Biotechnology

Research program

Lab Infrastructure BT

News

03 March 2016

A sustainable, good, affordable Hib vaccine for every child

With her doctoral research, TU Delft doctoral candidate Ahd Hamidi has made a major contribution to developing an innovative, scalable, affordable version of the Haemophilus influenzae (Hib) vaccine developed by Intravacc. This low-cost vaccine has now been used to protect 200 million children worldwide against Hib diseases such as meningitis, pneumonia, sepsis and otitis media. Hamidi has defended her dissertation at TU Delft on Thursday 3 March. Gram stain of Haemophilus influenzae type b bacterium Since the 1990s, children in high-income countries have been vaccinated on a large scale with Hib vaccine, which protects against Hib diseases such as meningitis. Since 1993, the Hib vaccine has also been included in the Dutch National Vaccination Programme. ‘The introduction of Hib-vaccine in developing countries was slow, mainly because of its relatively high price. Further, the local vaccine manufacturers didn’t had access to the technology needed for the production of the vaccine’, says Hamidi. In Intravacc’s Hib project she worked on process development, making a major scientific and social contribution to the availability of approved registered low-cost Hib vaccine. Her dissertation also discusses ways of optimising the process and thus reducing the cost price still further, an attractive option for both current or future partners want. Technology transfer and price reduction Hamidi’s research focused on process development and technology transfer to vaccine manufacturers in developing countries, and using mathematical models to improve process knowledge and investigate whether further process optimisation (cost reduction) is possible. In 2013, one of Intravacc’s partners marketed the Hib vaccine, as part of a combined vaccine including four others, through UNICEF at a price that was three times lower than that of existing Hib vaccines, thus bringing it within reach of large numbers of children. If a further price reduction can be achieved, the countries concerned would be able to bear the cost of the vaccine themselves in future. The knowledge gained in the Hib project has meanwhile been transferred successfully to local manufacturers in Indonesia, China (via Korea) and India. UNICEF and GAVI (the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation) are both involved in distributing the vaccine. Mathematical models Hamidi collaborated closely with experienced process designers and vaccine experts at such institutions as Intravacc (formerly the Netherlands Vaccine Institute (NVI) and the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM)) and with various vaccine manufacturers in Indonesia, China, Korea and India. She used the Delft process design method and the knowledge of experts at TU Delft to develop the mathematical models. This enabled predictable models of the Hib process developed and performing sensitivity analyses on the Hib process, thus showing the impact of particular choices on cost. ‘This approach can help both current and future Hib partners to make choices, for example between the use of existing production facilities and building new ones, or the optimum scale of production,’ explains Hamidi. Other vaccines This rational Delft method of process design, says Hamidi, can also be used very efficiently to develop other vaccines. While the process was being developed it was decided to protect it with a patent: partners have a license and their production method protected. More information After graduating in Chemical Engineering (MSc) and Bioprocess Design (PDEng) at TU Delft, Hamidi started working for the forerunners of Intravacc as a process technologist and subsequently project manager and technology transfer expert. In her dissertation she shares the lessons learned from the Hib project so that similar technology transfer projects can benefit from the experience. The project will help to reduce child mortality, one of the UN Millennium Development Goals. Hamidi published in the renowned journal Biotechnology Process in January 2016: ‘ Process development of a new Haemophilus influenzae type b conjugate vaccine and the use of mathematical modeling to identify process optimization possibilities ’ Contact For more information about the dissertation 'Towards a sustainable, quality and affordable Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine for every child in the world' , please contact A. Hamidi MSc, A.Hamidi@tudelft.nl / Ahd.Hamidi@intravacc.nl tel. +31 30 2742066 or Claire Hallewas (TU Delft Press Officer), c.r.hallewas@tudelft.nl , +31 6 4095 3085.

03 February 2016

Interview by BNR radio with Peter Mooij about the fattest algea

To produce biodiesel using algae, you can revert the best in Darwin's theory. For scientists, however clever on genetic engineering, nature still outwits us from Delft research Peter Mooij, TU Delft on BNR radio (in Dutch): "You need to reward an algea for the trick he does"

15 January 2016

Algae prove promising candidates for biodiesel production via 'survival of the fattest'

Smart methods for cultivating algae bring the efficient production of biodiesel using algae in sight. On Tuesday 19 January, Peter Mooij will obtain his doctorate at TU Delft for his work on this subject. CO 2 neutral There is huge scientific interest in the use of microalgae to produce carbohydrates and in particular lipids (fats), as lipids from microalgae can be converted into biodiesel. The amount of CO 2 released by the combustion of this biodiesel is equal to the amount of CO 2 that was previously extracted from the atmosphere by the microalgae. Thus the use of biodiesel does not lead to an increase in CO 2 in the atmosphere. 'Microalgae offer two huge advantages over other biological oil production platforms', says doctoral candidate Peter Mooij from TU Delft. 'Firstly, after cultivation, microalgae can be made up relatively largely of lipids. And secondly, relatively little fresh water and agricultural land is required to cultivate microalgae.' Survival of the fattest Mooij uses a smart method to cultivate suitable algae that is economically viable for large-scale algae production: survival of the fattest. The fattest algae survive. 'In the reactor we give a competitive advantage to the algae with the required characteristics, in this case the production of carbohydrates and fats. We start with a collection of 'ordinary' algae. During the day we provide them with light and CO 2 . This is enough for them to produce oil, however they are unable to divide. They need nutrients for cell division and they are only given these in the dark. To absorb these nutrients, the algae need energy and carbon. This means that only the fattest algae can divide, as they have stored these during the day. By removing some of the algae every day, the culture will eventually exist of only the fattest algae.' Starch 'All of our experiments led to systems in which carbohydrates (starch) formed the primary energy storage compounds', continues Mooij. 'So we have found a suitable environment in which carbohydrate production by algae is rewarded.' Unfortunately this environment is not yet selective for the storage of fats. The culture environment needs to be made even more specific to achieve this. 'But a greater understanding of the ecological role of lipids and carbohydrates in microalgae clears the way for the creation of lipid-specific selective environments. Rewarding a microalga for showing the desired behaviour by using a selective environment, one of the central concepts in my research, will be shown to be a valuable approach once there is a better understanding of the ecological role of lipids.' More information For further information please contact Peter Mooij tel. +31 6 - 483 826 35 or p.r.mooij@tudelft.nl or Wendy Batist, press officer TU Delft via tel. +31 - 15 - 27 884 99 or g.m.batist@tudelft.nl . Please read Peter Mooij's blogs on Faces of Science (only in Dutch).