Tree-Inspired Tannase-Immobilized Aerogel Reactor with High Liquid Flux and Enzyme Stability for Flow Biocatalytic Transformation of Tannins

Natural trees with uniquely aligned microchannels and water transportation capability bring inspiration to design high-performance biomimetic materials. Herein, a biomimetic aerogel reactor with vertically aligned channels and customized surface modification is developed and acts as a carrier to covalently immobilize tannase for high-efficiency flow biocatalytic conversion of tannins. Attributing to the interconnected cellular structure, aligned channels, high porosity, and hydrophilic property, the biomimetic biocatalysis reactor exhibits mechanical robustness and high liquid flux (2432 L m–2 h–1). Further intergradation with the rapid mass-transfer capability, comfortable microenvironment, and substrate enrichment effect from zwitterionic polymer modification, the biomimetic biocatalysis reactor shows improved pH and thermal stabilities, enzymatic activity, organic solvent tolerance, storage stability, and reusability compared to free enzyme and other substrate-based biocatalysis reactor. Moreover, the high conversion efficiency (99.6%) is achieved by the biomimetic biocatalysis reactor in flow biocatalytic transformation of tannins solely driven by gravity. These results demonstrate the promising strategy for designing a biomimetic enzyme reactor and validate the potential applications of immobilized tannase in biocatalytic engineering fields.