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Increasing long-chain dicarboxylic acid production by pretreating grease trap waste using ceramic ultrafiltration
Boris Gilis1, Kristien De Sitter2, Muhammad Bilal1
1Biochemical Wastewater Valorisation and Engineering (BioWAVE), Faculty of Applied Engineering, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171 Wilrijk, Belgium.
Bioresource Technology
|July 11, 2026
Summary
Ceramic ultrafiltration effectively removes inhibitors from grease trap waste (GTW), significantly boosting the production of long-chain dicarboxylic acids (LCDAs) by up to sixfold. This pretreatment enhances lipid waste valorization for sustainable chemical production.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology
- Chemical Engineering
- Environmental Science
Background:
- Grease trap waste (GTW) is a lipid-rich byproduct with potential for producing valuable chemicals.
- Anionic surfactants and trace metals in GTW inhibit bioconversion processes, limiting its use.
- Candida viswanathii can produce long-chain dicarboxylic acids (LCDAs) from lipid feedstocks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate ceramic ultrafiltration as a pretreatment method for GTW.
- To assess the impact of pretreatment on LCDA production by Candida viswanathii.
- To improve the efficiency and yield of LCDA synthesis from a low-value waste stream.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a 3 nm ZrO2 ceramic membrane for ultrafiltration of GTW.
- Employed a C1-grafted membrane variant to enhance filtration flux.
- Conducted shake flask and fed-batch bioreactor experiments with pretreated and untreated GTW.
Main Results:
- Ceramic ultrafiltration removed over 90% of anionic surfactants and trace metals (Ni, Zn, Fe).
- A C1-grafted membrane increased filtration flux sevenfold while maintaining contaminant removal.
- Pretreated GTW resulted in up to sixfold higher LCDA titres in shake flasks and a 25% improvement in bioreactor yield (43.5 g/L).
- Lipid-to-LCDA yield reached 82% with a productivity of 0.46 g/(L·h) in fed-batch cultures.
Conclusions:
- Ceramic ultrafiltration is an effective pretreatment technology for GTW.
- This method enables robust and enhanced production of LCDAs from lipid waste.
- The study supports the valorization of GTW for sustainable production of valuable chemicals.
