Method of desulfurization of fossil fuel with flavoprotein
US5733773A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 12, 1996 |
| Grant date | Mar 31, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 12, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC C)Chemistry; Metallurgy
- CPC primaryC12R2001/01
- WIPO fieldBiotechnology
- WIPO sectorChemistry
Abstract
The invention relates to the discovery that the rate of reaction of the desulfurization of fossil fuels is enhanced by the addition of a flavoprotein to the biocatalyst. The invention is drawn to a method for enhancing the rate of desulfurizing a fossil fuel containing organic sulfur compounds, comprising the steps of: PA1 a) contacting the fossil fuel with an aqueous phase containing a biocatalyst capable of cleaving carbon-sulfur bonds and a rate-enhancing amount of a flavoprotein, thereby forming a fossil fuel and aqueous phase mixture; PA1 b) maintaining the mixture of step (a) under conditions sufficient for cleavage of the carbon-sulfur bonds of the organic sulfur molecules by the biocatalyst, thereby resulting in a fossil fuel having a reduced organic sulfur content; and PA1 c) separating the fossil fuel having a reduced organic sulfur content from the resulting aqueous phase. The invention also relates to a recombinant microorganism containing one or more recombinant DNA molecules which encode a biocatalyst capable of desulfurizing a fossil fuel containing organic sulfur molecules and which encode a flavoprotein. The invention also relates to a composition comprising (a) a …
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.