Industrialization of the microbial resolution of chiral C3 and C4 synthetic units:: From a small beginning to a major operation, a personal account

This account describes the research and development of the microbial resolution of chiral C-3 and C-4 synthetic units through to the production stage. These chiral C-3 and C-4 synthetic units are mainly used for the production of various pharmaceuticals, new materials such as liquid crystals, chiral polymers, and natural compounds as well as in basic chemical research. The research started in 1983 and the industrial plant was built in 1994. The development is still ongoing and is being broadened to include C-4 chiral units, chiral propylene glycol, and so on. This project started as simple research on the activated sludge from an epichlorohydrin plant and evolved through many events and much research to an industrial production. We describe the various implications and the flow of events in the research and development through to the production of these chiral C-3 and C-4 synthetic units.