ABSTRACT
Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) are renewable and biodegradable polyesters produced by a wide range of microorganisms. Some PHA polymers have been described with characteristics similar to a range of petroleum-derived polymers. However, their applications have been limited by production costs. Long-chain fatty acids (LCFAs) are renewable substrates for PHA production with an abundance of waste sources suitable for lowering production cost. Production of medium-chain-length PHA (mcl-PHA) from unsaturated LCFAs results in longer monomer unit side-chains containing vinyl moieties. Although mcl-PHA produced from LCFAs have undesirable plastic film characteristics, they provide new avenues for chemical functionalization. The chapter describes production strategies for mcl-PHA production from LCFAs along with the reported modifications for novel polymer properties.
