Sugar Production from Hybrid Poplar Sawdust: Optimization of Enzymatic Hydrolysis and Wet Explosion Pretreatment.

Wet explosion pretreatment of hybrid poplar sawdust (PSD) for the production of fermentable sugar was carried out in the pilot-scale. The effects of pretreatment conditions, such as temperature (170-190 °C), oxygen dosage (0.5-7.

Oxidative degradation of biorefinery lignin obtained after pretreatment of forest residues of Douglas Fir.

Harvested forest residues are usually considered a fire hazards and used as "hog-fuel" which results in air pollution. In this study, the biorefinery lignin stream obtained after wet explosion pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis of forestry residues of Douglas Fir (FS-10) was characterized and further wet oxidized under alkaline conditions. The studies indicated that at 10% solids, 11.

Pretreatment of forest residues of Douglas fir by wet explosion for enhanced enzymatic saccharification.

The logging and lumbering industry in the Pacific Northwest region generates huge amount of forest residues, offering an inexpensive raw material for biorefineries. Wet explosion (WEx) pretreatment was applied to the recalcitrant biomass to optimize process conditions including temperature (170-190 °C), time (10-30 min), and oxygen loading (0.5-7.

Making lignin accessible for anaerobic digestion by wet-explosion pretreatment.

Lignin is a major part of the recalcitrant fraction of lignocellulose and in nature its degradation occurs through oxidative enzymes along with microbes mediated oxidative chemical actions. Oxygen assisted wet-explosion pretreatment promotes lignin solubility and leads to an increase biodegradation of lignin during anaerobic digestion processes. The pretreatment of feedlot manure was performed in a 10L reactor at 170°C for 25min using 4bars oxygen and the material was fed to a continuous stirred tank reactor operated at 55°C for anaerobic digestion.

β-glucosidases from a new Aspergillus species can substitute commercial β-glucosidases for saccharification of lignocellulosic biomass.

β-Glucosidase activity plays an essential role for efficient and complete hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass. Direct use of fungal fermentation broths can be cost saving relative to using commercial enzymes for production of biofuels and bioproducts. Through a fungal screening program for β-glucosidase activity, strain AP (CBS 127449, Aspergillus saccharolyticus ) showed 10 times greater β-glucosidase activity than the average of all other fungi screened, with Aspergillus niger showing second greatest activity.

Onsite enzyme production during bioethanol production from biomass: screening for suitable fungal strains.

Cellulosic ethanol production from biomass raw materials involves process steps such as pre-treatment, enzymatic hydrolysis, fermentation, and distillation. Use of streams within cellulosic ethanol production was explored for onsite enzyme production as part of a biorefinery concept. Sixty-four fungal isolates were in plate assays screened for lignocellulolytic activities to discover the most suitable fungal strain with efficient hydrolytic enzymes for lignocellulose conversion.

Aspergillus saccharolyticus sp. nov., a black Aspergillus species isolated in Denmark.

A novel species, Aspergillus saccharolyticus sp. nov., belonging to the Aspergillus section Nigri group is described.

Hydrolysis of Miscanthus for bioethanol production using dilute acid presoaking combined with wet explosion pre-treatment and enzymatic treatment.

Miscanthus is a high yielding bioenergy crop. In this study we used acid presoaking, wet explosion, and enzymatic hydrolysis to evaluate the combination of the different pre-treatment methods for bioethanol production with Miscanthus. Acid presoaking is primarily carried out in order to remove xylose prior to wet explosion.