Bioengineering the Futurewith Shell Oil

Transport Fuels

75% of liquid fuels are used for transport. 70% of that in cars.

Retail fuel is 95% fossil alkanes and 5% from a biological source.

By 2020, global demand for bio-derived fuels will be 500B litres.

Wood Image

The Exeter-Shell Projects

Genes for Alkane Production inHigher Plants

Inducible Wax SynthesisIn Salt Cress

Development of High-throughputMutant Analysis and Wax Imaging

Molecular Control of HCProduction & Secretion in Botryococcus braunii

B. braunii-BacterialInteractions

B. Braunii GenomeEvolution

Botryococcus braunii Culture SystemsProductivity & HC Extraction

Synthetic Ecologyfor Optimum Algal Growth

HC Synthesis Screen in Oleaginous Yeasts

Rhodosporidium toruloidesGenome Analysis

High-throughputScreen Development

Alkane Production & Secretionin Vibrio furnissii

Alkane Synthesis incyanobacteria

Alkane Synthesis inDesulfovibrio

FA Catabolism incyanobacteria

Alkane Synthesis inMycobacterium

Forced Evolution& Mutagenesis for

Increased FA

Bacterial Population Samplingfor HC Production

Molecular & HC AnalysisOf Isolated Mutants

Molecular Control of Hydrocarbon Synthesis & Secretion in Bacteria, Yeast and Algae

for Advanced Biofuel Production

Metabolism &Enzymes

Gene & PathwayDiscovery

MolecularBioinformatics

Synthetic Biology

HC Analysis

Culture Systems& DSP

C-Flux EngineeringIn YeastVariable Chain Length & Branched HC

in Fermentative Microbes

Synthetic Biology

Engineer the production of

gasoline, jet-fuel, diesel and

lubricant oil in E. coli that are

identical to fossil fuels.

Biological Alkanes require

no alteration of current

engine technologies.

acoL

bkdAA &

bkdAB

bkdB

ilvE

fabHB

accA to accD

ILV Keto acid

MDHLA

Keto acyl CoA

Malonyl-ACP

Acetyl CoA

Fatty acyl-ACP

Branched fatty acyl-

ACP

fabH

FFA

F-al

Alkanes &

alkenes

NpAD

luxC & luxE

tesA

FATB1

luxD

FATB1

luxD

“Third Generation” Biofuels from Algae

Renewable.

Sustainable.

Productive.

CO2 Mitigation.

Experimental.

Botryococcus braunii Oils.

Synthesises and secretes very long chain hydrocarbons.

Major fossil component of oil wells.

Botryococcus braunii Research.

Genome sequencing and

bioinformatics to elucidate oil

biosynthetic pathways &

interactions with symbiotic

bacteria.

Quantify B. braunii physiology

for Life Cycle Analysis.

Model and test oil production in

industrial culture conditions.