A new sustainable manufacturing hub will use engineering biology techniques to transform carbon-based waste usually destined for landfill into next-generation materials including pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.
By engineering microrganisms, the Carbon-Loop Sustainable Biomanufacturing Hub (C-Loop) aims to make the manufacturing of everyday products – more than 90 per cent of which are manufactured from fossil fuels using unsustainable chemical processes – cleaner and part of a circular economy.
Engineering biology – an area in which the University of Edinburgh is a UK and global leader - applies engineering principles to biological processes to create new materials, treatments and solutions.
The hub will also establish the UK’s first BioFactory, a dedicated platform for waste analysis, sustainability evaluation and scale-up that will cut emissions, reduce landfill and help to build a fossil-free manufacturing base.
C-Loop is one of four UK-wide centres announced by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), which is providing £11 million.
It will be led by Professor Stephen Wallace, UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and Chair of Chemical Biotechnology from the University of Edinburgh, in partnership with the Universities of Manchester, Nottingham and Surrey, University College London and Imperial College.
Professor Wallace, Director of C-Loop, said:
Amid a growing population, diminishing natural resources, and a changing climate, there is now an urgent environmental, industrial and political imperative to rapidly harness engineering biology technologies to defossilise manufacturing and accelerate the UK’s path to net-zero.
C-Loop brings together diverse expertise from across academic disciplines, industrial sectors, and the entire value-chain to drive the growth and scale-up of this emerging technology, unlocking its full climate and economic potential. ”
Supported by Edinburgh Innovations (EI), the University’s commercialisation service, more than 40 industry partners are involved in the hub. These include global companies from across seven industry sectors, national innovation centres such as IBioIC and facilities such as the Edinburgh Genome Foundry and Imperial’s BRC Genomics Facility.
C-Loop’s multidisciplinary research community, which includes microbiologists, chemists, engineers and sustainability experts, will develop innovative supply chains to accelerate the development and commercial adoption of breakthrough technologies.
In doing so, the hub will help support UK-based engineering biology companies, nurturing the UK’s capabilities in this area.
Dr Andrea Taylor, CEO of EI, said:
In 2023, the UK Government identified engineering biology as one of its five priority areas, and it’s fantastic to see investment into this field: one that offers so much promise for sustainable industry, and an area where the UK can lead globally.
At Edinburgh, we have a host of pioneering, multidisciplinary researchers, and world-leading facilities. We would urge companies to get in touch and work with us as part of this future green industrial revolution. ”
Dr Jen Vanderhoven, Chief Operating Officer at BBIA and Chair of the C-Loop Board, said:
I'm delighted to be part of the C-Loop team for this ambitious, multi-million-pound project harnessing engineering biology to upcycle waste carbon.
With industry urgently seeking sustainable alternatives to fossil-based inputs, this initiative is critical in driving the transition to above-ground carbon sources.
There’s no time to waste in getting to no waste – this project not only tackles major environmental challenges but also unlocks significant economic opportunities through the production of sustainable chemicals. ”
C-Loop builds on the University’s sector-leading engineering biology research and innovation. Edinburgh hosts the UK’s largest and most comprehensive group of researchers in the discipline.
Across the University, researchers are working with more than 200 engineering biology-related companies to drive UK innovation, adoption and growth.
