Cellulose Carriers from Spent Coffee Grounds for Lipase Immobilization and Evaluation of Biocatalyst Performance

Marta Ostojčić, Mirna Brekalo, Marija Stjepanović, Blanka Bilić Rajs, Natalija Velić (), Stjepan Šarić, Igor Djerdj, Sandra Budžaki and Ivica Strelec
Additional contact information
Marta Ostojčić: Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Franje Kuhača 18, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Mirna Brekalo: Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Franje Kuhača 18, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Marija Stjepanović: Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Franje Kuhača 18, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Blanka Bilić Rajs: Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Franje Kuhača 18, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Natalija Velić: Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Franje Kuhača 18, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Stjepan Šarić: Department od Chemistry, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Cara Hadrijana 8/a, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Igor Djerdj: Department od Chemistry, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Cara Hadrijana 8/a, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Sandra Budžaki: Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Franje Kuhača 18, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Ivica Strelec: Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Franje Kuhača 18, 31000 Osijek, Croatia

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 21, 1-27

Abstract: In line with the circular economy approach and the pursuit of sustainable solutions for spent coffee grounds, this study investigates the valorization of spent coffee grounds as a source of cellulose-based enzyme immobilization carriers. Considering that global coffee consumption generates approximately 6.9 million tonnes of spent coffee grounds annually, their disposal represents both an environmental challenge and an opportunity for value-added applications. A multistep extraction process, including Soxhlet extraction followed by sequential subcritical extraction with ethanol and water, and alkaline treatment, led to the production of cellulose-enriched carriers. The carriers obtained were characterized by their morphology, porosity and surface properties and subsequently used for the two lipases immobilization, Burkholderia cepacia (BCL) and Pseudomonas fluorescens (PFL), using three techniques: adsorption and covalent binding via direct and indirect methods. The immobilized lipases were analyzed for key biochemical and operational properties and compared with each other and with their free enzymes. Based on their stability, catalytic activity, and reusability, the lipases immobilized by adsorption were identified as the most efficient biocatalysts. These immobilized enzymes were then used in two selected reactions to demonstrate their practical utility: cocoa butter substitute synthesis using PFL and the enzymatic pretreatment of wastewater from the oil processing industry using BCL. Both immobilized lipases showed excellent catalytic performance and maintained their high activity over four consecutive reuse cycles.

Keywords: spent coffee grounds; cellulose carriers; lipase immobilization; biocatalyst performance; circular economy; waste valorization; sustainable bioprocesses (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/21/9633/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/21/9633/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:21:p:9633-:d:1782609

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().