Biotechnological transformation of municipal wastes into high-value compounds: volatile fatty acids, polyhydroxyalkanoates, and biofuels

BIOREFINE is a collaborative research project between the Universities of Rome, Venice, and Verona, funded by the Italian PRIN fund as part of the NEXT-Generation EU – NATIONAL RECOVERY AND RESILIENCE PLAN (PNRR). The project aims to valorize urban waste by transforming it into high-value products such as volatile fatty acids (VFAs), medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), eco-friendly biological solvents, and methane.

LabICAB is responsible for developing a fermentation and chain-elongation system to produce and purify MCFAs from the organic fraction of municipal solid waste, as well as to assess the anaerobic biodegradability of the PHAs produced by our partners.