Design of Raspberry‐Shaped Microcarriers with Adjustable Protrusions and Functional Groups for the Improvement of Lipase Immobilization and Biocatalysis: Environmentally Friendly Esterification of Oleic Acid for Biodiesel

Abstract Raspberry‐shaped microparticles with adjustable protrusions and functional groups were synthesized and applied as carriers for the immobilization of lipase. The structural advantages of the raspberry‐shaped microcarriers with immobilized lipase (RM‐IL) are not only that the protrusions are constructed to play the role of a spacer arm, but the block structure enhances the bioactivity of lipase at the oil–water interface. The activation method used for the carrier has a significant effect on the performance of immobilized lipase. RM‐IL prepared by carboxylic acid activation has a 3.5‐fold increase of activity compared with that from amine activation and generates a fourfold increase of protein bound to 164 mg g −1 of carrier. Finally, RM‐IL is used as an environmentally friendly and high‐efficiency biocatalyst to catalyze the esterification of oleic acid for biodiesel under mild conditions, and the conversion can reach up to 82.1 %. Above all, raspberry‐shaped microcarriers prepared by an improved seed emulsion polymerization have prospects for industrialization.