Sustainable Biotechnology and Bioeconomy (SusBioTech)


 

In its mission statement the UFZ proclaims that it wants to demonstrate ways of combining societal development with a healthy environment. In this respect, the type and production of materials and energy carriers play a significant role. The goal of the Integrated Project „Sustainable Biotechnology and Bioeconomy“ is to develop and apply innovative (bio)technologies for an eco-efficient production of materials and energy carriers under consideration of entire value-added chains.

Through an integrated approach and the implementation of methods from the natural and engineering sciences, scientists contribute to technical solutions that enable resources to be managed more efficiently, production processes to be optimized and materials and energy carriers to be produced sustainably. This not only involves the circular economy approach and the efficient and sustainable utilization of renewable, but also a consideration of the economic and societal impacts of new technologies.


The research conducted within the IP profits from both the disciplinary and the interdisciplinary expertise of the UFZ: the availability of highly versatile analytic and omics platforms, in-depth expertise in microbiology, biochemistry, molecular biology, modelling and (bio)chemical engineering, a bioprocessing platform including a pilot plant facility as well as bioeconomy-oriented expertise in the social sciences (cooperation with the thematic area “Environment and Society”).

The IP is organized into three work packages (WPs):
WP 1: Development of biotechnological processes for the production of materials and energy carriers
WP 2: Innovative solutions for the process environment
WP 3: Analytics and modelling of productive systems