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Invented an all-bioenzymatic method for extracting Eucommia rubber, obtaining long-filament refined gum of nearly 99% purity.

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Zhang Xuejun, from Huangpi, Hubei, is a professor at the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Guizhou University, and Deputy Director of the Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory of Fermentation Engineering and Biopharmaceuticals. He graduated from Sichuan University, earned his PhD at Wuhan University, and studied in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge in 1998. Combining bioenzymatic chemistry with engineering, he opened a new route for extracting Eucommia rubber entirely by bioenzymatic methods, obtaining high-purity Eucommia rubber from Eucommia bark and leaves without chemical means, shifting pollution control in gum extraction from 'end-of-pipe treatment' to 'source prevention'.

Enzymatic extraction simultaneously yields multiple natural products, significantly reduces production costs, and produces pristine long-filament Eucommia rubber. In 2016 he succeeded in extracting natural long-filament Eucommia rubber by the all-bioenzymatic method, and subsequently obtained refined Eucommia gum of nearly 99% purity using an ultrasound-assisted physical method - contributing a key element to China's industrial landscape of producing qualified bio-based Eucommia rubber by three processes: solvent, physical and enzymatic methods. He also led the drafting of the Technical Standard for Biological Extraction of Eucommia Rubber.

Milestones

• In September 2014, completed batch gum-extraction trials using full enzymatic hydrolysis of Eucommia bark at Henan Hengruiyuan Industrial Company
• In 2015, accompanied the Eucommia Industry Alliance of the China Rubber Industry Association on a survey in Tongren, promoting enzymatic extraction technology
• Studied in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, UK; after returning to China, has continuously researched Eucommia leaf components and Eucommia rubber at Guizhou University

Key Contributions

• In 2014, achieved all-bioenzymatic hydrolysis extraction of Eucommia rubber with purity above 92%, reaching industrial raw-material grade
• In 2016, successfully extracted natural long-filament Eucommia rubber by the all-bioenzymatic method; in 2018-2019, obtained pristine long-filament refined Eucommia gum of over 95% - nearly 99% - purity using an ultrasound-assisted physical method
• Led the drafting of the China Forestry Industry Association group standard 'Technical standard for biological extraction of Eucommia rubber'
• Deputy Director of the Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory of Fermentation Engineering and Biopharmaceuticals; leads the National Natural Science Foundation of China project 'Molecular regulatory mechanisms of Eucommia rubber particle formation'
• His enzymatic gum-extraction equipment is applied at Guohui Eucommia Company in Tongren, Guizhou, driving about 5,000 mu of local Eucommia cultivation