Relevant production processes are continuously optimized, and PHA production costs are gradually declining.

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) is a polymer biomaterial that is widely found in microbial cells such as bacterial cells (similar to bacterial fats). PHA has good biocompatibility, gas barrier properties, and natural degradability. It has broad application prospects in the fields of packaging materials, tissue engineering materials, sustained-release materials, electrical materials, agriculture, cosmetics, and medical materials.

In recent years, as environmental protection supervision has become increasingly strict and national support has increased, the market demand for biodegradable plastics has been released. It is expected that the global demand for biodegradable plastics will exceed 4.3 million tons in 2025. PHA is a typical fully biodegradable polymer material. Currently, the widely used biodegradable plastics PBAT and PLA cannot achieve natural degradation. From this point of view, the PHA market has huge development potential.

PHA synthesis methods include microbial fermentation, biosynthesis, chemical synthesis, genetically modified plants, activated sludge, etc. Among them, biosynthesis is the mainstream synthesis method of PHA. The biosynthesis method uses the own metabolism of microorganisms to synthesize products. Currently, the PHA biosynthetic pathways mainly include three-step synthesis pathways, five-step synthesis pathways, and fatty acid β-oxidation pathways. Overall, due to the relatively complex production process and high cost, my country’s PHA market is still in its infancy. The high production cost is the main reason that restricts the large-scale promotion and application of PHA.

According to the “2021-2025 China Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) Product Market Analysis Feasibility Research Report released by the Industrial Research Center 》 shows that PHA-related research first originated in the 1920s. After years of development and accumulation, PHA has gradually realized industrial production. In the international market, major PHA suppliers include Kaneka of Japan, BASF of Germany, ICI of the United Kingdom, LLC of the United States, Metabolix, etc. my country’s research on PHA started early, and PHA-related technology is already at the global leading level.

At this stage, my country’s PHA planned production capacity has reached 120,000 tons/year. The main production companies include Tianjin Guoyun Bio, Beijing Blue Crystal Microorganism, Shenzhen Yikeman, Beijing Microstructure Factory, Tianan Biomaterials Co., Ltd., etc., among which Beijing Blue Crystal Microorganism It is the first company in my country to significantly reduce the cost of PHA and achieve large-scale sales. Up to now, PHA has experienced four generations of commercial products, namely PHB, PHBV, PHBHHx and P34HB. With the continuous optimization of relevant production processes, the performance of PHA has been greatly improved, and its application fields have been further expanded.

Industry analysts said that PHA is a typical fully biodegradable polymer material. As environmental protection regulations become increasingly strict, the PHA market is developing. The potential is huge. At present, my country’s PHA market is still in the early stages of development. High production costs are the main factor restricting the development of the PHA industry. In the future, with the continuous optimization of relevant production processes and the expansion of downstream application fields, the development space of the PHA market will be further expanded.