Lignocellulose for Biofuels

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Lignocellulose for Biofuels
Ana M. López Contreras Business Unit Biobased
Products Agrotechnology Food Innovations
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Introducing AF

• Independent RD institute within Wageningen-UR
• Activities AF
• Food Processing
• Quality in Chains
• Biobased products
• Agrisystems Environment
• Annual turnover 35 M 450 f.t. staff (2003)

Bench- and pilot scale research facility, AF
Wageningen
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Activities in Biomass to Biofuels

• Feedstock
• Quality analysis, protocol
• Logistics, ecological effects
• Pretreatment hydrolysis
• Alkaline pretreatment
• Enzymatic hydrolysis
• Fermentation
• Ethanol, Acetone-Butanol- Ethanol, lactic acid
• Hydrogen

Wheat straw harvest for EET K01116
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ABE from lignocellulosic biomass

• Lignocellulosic biomass

Composition (in weight) of mature plants.
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Pretreatment Hydrolysis of Lignocellulose

• Process development
• Mild temperature (lt 100C) ,alkaline pretreatment
• Mechanical treatments (scale 100-200 kg dry
  matter/hour)
• Enzymatic hydrolysis (scale 100L)

Bench-scale fermentation after enzymatic
hydrolysis
Pretreatment of straw at high solids content
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Fermentation

• Fermentation processes
• Ethanol production by S. cerevisiae. Only from C6
  sugars (glucose).
• Production of acetone, butanol (main product) and
  ethanol by Clostridium from sugars. Use both C5
  (xylose) and C6 sugars.
• Improvements by novel separation techniques
  (membrane technology).
• Fermentation facilities
• Laboratory scale 1-20L
• Pilot scale 100L, 1000L

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Fermentation
Membrane bioreactor for continuous ABE
fermentation with cell recycle.
Pilot scale fermentation at AF
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Related research at AF

• Biomass
• innovations in biomass production systems
• biorefinery concepts biomass storage
• upgrading of agrofibres
• Pretreatment, hydrolysis
• alkaline pulping (paper industries)
• compression refining to reduce energy (patent)
• Fermentation
• hydrogen,
• polymers, fatty acids, .
• Others
• lignin applications (cement, adhesives,
  colorants) silica
• RD activities in 3d World jute, cocos, oil
  palm, bamboo

Miscanthus in NL
www.biomassandbioenergy.nl