Ethanolysis of rapeseed oil to produce biodiesel fuel catalyzed by Fusarium heterosporum lipase-expressing fungus immobilized whole-cell biocatalysts

We demonstrated ethanolysis of rapeseed oil to produce biodiesel fuel using lipase-producing filamentous fungi immobilized on biomass support particles (BSPs) as a whole-cell biocatalyst. We prepared two types of whole-cell biocatalyst: wild-type Rhizopus oryzae producing triacylglycerol lipase (w-ROL) and recombinant Aspergillus oryzae expressing Fusarium heterosporum lipase (r-FHL). Both w-ROL and r-FHL successfully catalyzed the ethanolysis of rapeseed oil, and the fatty acid ethyl ester yield was as high as 79% (w-ROL) or 94% (r-FHL). In the case of r-FHL, the residual monoglycerides (MGs) and diglycerides (DGs) were no more than 0.73 and 0.18%, respectively. In addition, r-FHL could be recycled for the ethanolysis of rapeseed oil, retaining over 85% fatty acid ethyl ester yield by the fifth cycle. r-FHL was revealed to be a promising catalyst for biodiesel production using rapeseed oil and ethanol.