CMET and dissertation supervisors Prof. dr. Ramon Ganigué and Prof. dr. ir. Nico Boon proudly presents the public defence of the doctoral dissertation of Eng. Kevin Sabbe. The title of the doctoral dissertation is “Organic waste valorisation to carboxylic acids through chain elongation processes” – “De valorisatie van organisch afval tot carbonzuren via ketenverlengingsprocessen”. The publice defence will take place on Thursday the 5th of December 2024 at 17:00 in the Auditorium A1 (Feestzaal) at Campus Coupure, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent.
A short abstract of the doctoral research
The generation and management of organic waste remain significant challenges in our current economy, with around 250 million tonnes produced annually in the European Union as of 2022. Valorising this organic waste into valuable bioproducts is essential to advancing a circular bioeconomy, prioritising sustainable resource use and waste reduction. As waste management paradigms evolve, there is a growing focus on producing high-value compounds instead of disposing of waste. However, the predominant methods for organic waste valorisation – such as composting and anaerobic digestion for biogas production – often yield low-value end products, of which the economic viability frequently relies on governmental support.
To move beyond these state-of-the-art practices, lactic acid chain elongation has emerged as a promising alternative for the valorisation of organic waste streams. This process converts lactic-acid rich waste streams into medium-chain carboxylic acids like caproic acid, a valuable compound usually derived from fossil resources. This dissertation explores the optimisation of the lactic acid chain elongation process, investigating the influence of various operational parameters and enhancing process monitoring through flow cytometry. The findings obtained in this research contribute to advancing the field of organic waste valorisation, offering new insights into sustainable bioproduct generation.
