This technology involves treating dried coffee grounds with an alkaline solution at high temperatures, separating the oil using a non-polar solvent such as heptane or hexane, and then washing, neutralizing, and enzymatically hydrolyzing the remaining solids to produce sugars. This single process yields both oil for biodiesel feedstock and sugars for microbial fermentation.
While biorefineries offer a solution to fossil fuel depletion and pollution, they have traditionally relied on food crops like potatoes, corn, and sugarcane, which can drive up food and feed prices. Coffee grounds are a non-edible organic biomass generated in volumes equal to coffee imports, but their complex composition has lacked specialized conversion technology, limiting their use to simple applications like air fresheners or compost, with most being discarded.
This technology uses alkaline solutions such as sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, or ammonia for high-temperature treatment to efficiently extract oil in a short time while enhancing enzymatic conversion yields. Hydrolysis employs a combination of cellulase, beta-glucosidase, and beta-mannanase to convert galactomannan, which is abundant in coffee, into sugars. The non-polar solvent used for oil extraction can be recovered and reused. Applicable to biodiesel production, microbial fermentation, and byproduct recycling for coffee manufacturers and franchises, this method turns a single waste stream into two valuable products, converting disposal costs into revenue.
This invention was developed with support from the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning for the microalgae-derived mixed sugar conversion process and the establishment of a β-lactam intermediate/amino acid precursor production system.
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