Recovery of amorphous polyhydroxybutyrate granules from Cupriavidus necator cells grown on used cooking oil.

Used cooking oil (UCO) was employed as the sole carbon source for the production of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) by cultivation in batch mode of Cupriavidus necator DSM 428. The produced biomass was used for extraction of the PHB granules with a solvent-free approach using sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), and the enzyme Alcalase in an aqueous medium. The recovered PHB granules showed a degree of purity higher than 90% and no crystallization (i.e., granules were recovered in their 'native' amorphous state) as demonstrated by wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXS). Granules were characterized according to their thermal properties and stability by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Results show that UCO can be used as a renewable resource to produce amorphous PHB granules with excellent properties in a biocompatible manner.