US researchers use industrial waste to produce hydrocarbons
University of California researchers have created hydrocarbons from industrial carbon waste, by applying an Actinobacter vinelandii bacteria catalyst. The bacteria is commonly found in soil, and could be used to create affordable, renewable biofuel. The application of the bacteria to waste carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide creates methane, ethylene, ethane, propane, propylene and butane. Scale is the largest challenge for adapting the system to large-volume production.

In California, researchers at the University of California, Irvine envision growing the Actinobacter vinelandii bacteria on industrial carbon waste to generate hydrocarbons. They found that the A. vinelandii strain that expresses the nitrogenase enzyme can produce methane (CH 4 ), ethylene (C 2 H 4 ), ethane (C 2 H 6 ), propylene (C 3 H 6 ), propane (C 3 H 8 ) and butane (C 4 H 10 ).

So far they have optimized the bacteria to pump out the catalyst in greater amounts. Their lab is now engineering the enzyme to make longer-chain hydrocarbons for liquid fuel, with the goal of getting seven to eight chain carbon products.