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| Contact:Rebecca Wallace (608) 231-9275 E-mail: rwallace@fs.fed.us |
Distributed March 20th, 2009 NR # 20090320-01 view PDF » view Word » |
| Biofuel Production from Woody Biomass Improved with New Pretreatment Process | |
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MADISON, Wis.- A major barrier to the commercial development of biobased fuels and products from woody biomass has been addressed thanks to a joint research effort between the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW).
FPL and UW researchers have developed a novel process that helps overcome the natural resistance of biomass to enzymatic deconstruction. Processes that can efficiently convert woody biomass to ethanol are lacking due in part to what is referred to as cellulose recalcitrance, the inability to efficiently convert cellulose to glucose, a necessary step in ethanol production. The newly developed process is a sulfite pretreatment to overcome recalcitrance of lignocellulose, or SPORL. According to FPL research general engineer JunYong Zhu, "despite much research and development success in the area of biofuels, there is still a lack of commercially viable pretreatment processes for cellulosic ethanol production from woody biomass, especially from softwoods." "SPORL is only the second known pretreatment process for efficiently converting softwoods," says Zhu. "Softwood tree species are dominant in several parts of the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and northern Europe, so it is important to the success of woody biomass conversion that we are able to utilize this resource." SPORL addresses other critical issues associated with woody biomass conversion. For example, the pretreatment significantly reduces the energy consumption needed to physically reduce the size of woody biomass. The reduction of energy consumption using the SPORL treatment sequence reduces the energy needed for size reduction to about the same level as required with agricultural residuals used for biofuel production," says Zhu. SPORL is similar to sulfite pulping which has been carried out at a large commercial scale for decades According to Zhu, mills with the capacity to process 1000 to 2000 tons of woody biomass per day could instead produce 30 to 60 million gallons of ethanol per year. "SPORL should have excellent commercial scalability," says Zhu. "By making use of existing equipment, processes, and knowledge of the pulp and paper industry, SPORL has fewer technical barriers to building new plants or to retrofitting existing pulp mills to production of biofuels." Furthermore, SPORL should also have excellent potential for co-production of value-added products. SPORL produces a sulfonated lignin that is used in a variety of applications with established markets. The potential for co-products should improve the viability of producing biofuels from woody biomass. A scientific article describing the SPORL process for softwoods has been published in Bioresource Technology. A second article on the application of the SPORL process for hardwoods has been accepted for publication by Biotechnology Progress. The U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory was established in 1910 in Madison, Wis., with the mission to conserve and extend the country's wood resources. Today, FPL's research scientists work with academic and industrial researchers and other government agencies in exploring ways to promote healthy forests and clean water and improve papermaking and recycling processes. Through FPL's Advanced Housing Research Center, researchers also work to improve homebuilding technologies and materials. Information is available at FPL's Web site: www.fpl.fs.fed.us. # # # | |