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Conversion
of biomass into ethanol generally involves three steps: pretreatment to open up biomass for enzyme
action; enzymatic hydrolysis of the pretreated material to release sugars;
and fermentation of the sugars by microorganisms, such as yeast, to produce
ethanol. The second step, enzymatic
hydrolysis, typically targets cellulose, which is the predominant component
of biomass, while the sugars from hemicellulose are often released during
pretreatment. The cellulose substrate
is hydrolyzed by cellulase enzymes to produce glucose, which can be fermented
by microorganisms into ethanol. Thus,
the efficiency of the cellulose hydrolysis step directly impacts ethanol
yields and/or conversion costs. Typically,
some of the cellulase enzymes that are added to the pretreated biomass to
hydrolyze cellulose become bound to lignin (which makes up 15-30% of
biomass). However, cellulase enzymes
are unable act on lignin, and they are rendered useless by such binding. To compensate for this unproductive
binding, additional quantities of cellulase must be added to the biomass, or
else conversion efficiencies suffer.
In either scenario, the cost/profit of the overall process becomes
less favorable. This
technology is claimed in the issued United States Patent No. 7,604,976 and
the published United States Patent Application No. 11/229,817. We are seeking
an industrial partner interested in its commercialization. (Ref: J202) |
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«Technology Transfer Office : Sponsored Projects : Dartmouth College |
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Phone: (603) 646-3027 |
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Fax: (603) 646-3670 |
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