생물공학연구실Prof. Oh's laboratory focuses on the production of biofuels, biochemicals and high-value pigments from CO2 using microalgae (Chlorella, Haematococcus pluvialis) and electroactive bacteria.
We are working on the development of microalgal biorefinery process, which composed of strain selection, lipid and pigment biosyntheses, in silico cell modeling, high cell-density cultivation, photo-bioreactor design and optimization, algae harvesting, lipid extraction, and biofuel conversion. We are also interested in transportation biofuels (biodiesel and biohydrogen) and high-value carotenoid pigment (lutein and astaxanthin) from microbial biomass. These topics are within a wide range of industrial biotechnologies and require in-depth studies on cell physiology, enzyme engineering, systems biology, biochemical engineering, bio-separation, and bioenergy engineering.
Recently, new bacterial screening/characterization and process optimization are under way for efficient bioelectrochemical production of chemicals (e.g. acetate) from CO2,
Recent Research
1. Development of low-cost photo-bioreactor system for microalgae mass-cultivation
2. Induction of neutral lipid accumulation in Chlorella sp. using electro/physicochemical stresses
3. Induction of astaxanthin pigment accumulation in Haematococcus pluvialis using electro/physicochemical stresses
4. Flocculation harvesting for cost-effective microalgal biomass recovery
5. Efficient extraction of lipid and pigment from microalgal biomass using ionic liquid and engineered nanoparticle
5. Bioelectrochemical acetate production from CO2 using enriched anaerobic consortia and new isolates