Syngas Breakthroughs with LanzaTech

Project Summary

Liquid fuels and chemicals can be derived from syngas. Acetogenic bacteria have the ability to use CO and CO2 as carbon sources and CO and H2 as energy sources, leading to the production of acetate, ethanol, and 2,3-butanediol (BDO). Numerous strains are already employed as industrial biocatalysts for syngas fermentation. The University of Queensland has been in collaboration with LanzaTech since 2012, back when LanzaTech was a startup in New Zealand. We played a pivotal role in developing a genome-scale model and a platform for multi-omics analysis. In acknowledgement of our significant contribution to the technology’s development, we have continuously partnered with them for over a decade, including a current partnership through the ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic biology at AIBN. Our technology has played a key role in establishing LanzaTech’s commercial-scale gas fermentation capabilities globally, generating thousands of tons per year of fuel-grade ethanol from steel mill flue gas.