Microbial Biosurfactants and their Environmental and Industrial Applications

Microbial biosurfactants are green molecules with high application potential in environmental and industrial sectors. Chemical diversity of biosurfactants allows them versatility and broad range surfactants capability without compromising performance or economic viability. Biosurfactants are used as emulsifiers, dispersants, wetting agents, oil recovery agents, biopesticides, stabilizers, solubilizers, and bioremediation agents (pesticide, heavy metals and oil spill cleanup). This comprehensive book on biosurfactants and their environmental and industrial applications offers a broad spectrum of information on potential applications of biosurfactants in various fields and related technological developments.

Introduction to Microbial Biosurfactants. Downstream Processing of Microbial Biosurfactants. Sophorolipids: Unique Microbial Glycolipids with Vast Application Potential. Antimicrobial Applications of Rhamnolipids in Agriculture and Wound Healing. Microbial Production and Applications of Mannosylerythritol, Cellobiose and Trehalose Lipids. Microbial Glycoprotein and Lipopeptide Biosurfactants: Production, Properties and Applications. Biosurfactants from Lactic Acid Bacteria. Biosurfactants from Actinobacteria: State of the Art and Future Perspectives. Biosurfactants Mediated Approaches in Synthesis and Stabilization of Nanoparticles. Biosurfactants and Their Applications in Petroleum Industry. Natural and Microbial Biosurfactants’ Use in the Food Industry. Biosurfactants in Cosmetic, Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Industry. Biosynthesis of Glycolipids and their Genetic Engineering. Microbial Biosurfactants: From Lab to Market. The Future of Microbial Biosurfactants and their Applications.

Professor Ibrahim M. BANAT, Professor of Microbial Biotechnology at the University of Ulster, UK. He has more than 30 years' experience in both academic and research institutions in Europe and internationally and has several active collaborative projects supported by the EU and international academic and industrial establishments. Research interests include biosurfactant and bio-actives production and their potential utilization in medicine, pharmaceutical applications, environmental oil pollution control and hydrocarbon polluted land bioremediation and microbial enhanced oil recovery. He has also worked on molecular and cell biology of thermophilic Geobacilli bacteria and bioethanol fermentation. To date (June 2018) he has more than 300 publications (H-Index 68) and 22,500 citations.

Dr. Rengathavasi Thavasi, R&D Manager – Fermentation Technology at Jeneil Biotech Inc., Saukville, WI, USA. He has 17 years' research experience in microbial biosurfactants, bioemulsifiers, biopesticides, antimicrobials, natural flavor chemicals, probiotics and their industrial and environmental applications. He has filed three U.S. Patents, published 23 research articles in refereed journals and written five book chapters. Thavasi has been awarded five USA-NSF-SBIR research grants (as a principal investigator) for his biosurfactant derived biopesticides and biosurfactant research. He is serving as a reviewer for peer review journals and research grant proposals.