Biomanufacturing

APL is studying polyhydroxyalkanoates, or PHAs—naturally occurring, biodegradable polymers that many microorganisms naturally make as an energy reserve—as the basis for generating 3D-printable materials on-site from locally sourced materials. Depending on what they’re fed, the microorganisms will produce plastics with slightly different properties, from brittle to flexible, raising the possibility that PHA-based materials could be tailored for a variety of applications.

APL researchers are enhancing the capabilities of solid-state devices, such as cameras and sensors, by incorporating lifelike properties into them. Using only biological parts, they are developing a miniaturized thermal-sensing platform that generates its own power using a light-driven proton pump, similar to those found in our own retinas. It senses heat signatures using snake-derived, heat-triggered receptors, and it converts those signatures into a downstream detectable output—all within a small, fatty capsule.

APL researchers are leveraging advances in carbon dioxide capture, chemical engineering, and synthetic biology to produce nutritionally complete and tasty foods—on demand, in the field. The group is using electricity to capture water, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and trace minerals from the air and then producing a rich, glucose-based material (called feedstock) on which to grow microbial food products.