Economic Assessment of Bi-Functional Chemicals

Biotechnology is the essential tool in transforming carbohydrated feedstocks into biorenewable chemicals. Bifunctional molecules have wide range of applications in plastic, lubricant, and surfactant industries. Industrial bi-functional chemicals are currently produced from non-renewable petroleum sources. Our desire is to replace these chemicals functionally and directly. There are biological pathways to many families of bi-functional chemicals through 3-Ketyoacylsythase (KASIII). Our goal is to assess which biorenewable bi-functional chemicals have the most economic potential.