木质纤维素稀酸水解糖液乙醇发酵研究进展

以木质纤维素为原料生产燃料乙醇,首先要对原料进行预处理得到可发酵糖,在稀酸水解木质纤维素得到的糖液中,除含有葡萄糖、木糖等六碳糖和五碳糖外,根据水解温度、酸浓度和时间的不同,还含有不同浓度的发酵抑制剂。因此,在研究木质纤维素稀酸水解糖液的乙醇发酵中,对代谢木糖成乙醇的菌种的研究、对耐/代谢发酵抑制剂微生物的研究、对稀酸水解糖液的脱毒方法的研究以及对稀酸水解糖液不同发酵方式的乙醇发酵研究等非常重要。重点介绍了以上几个方面近几年研究的进展。     

木质纤维素预处理液膜分离脱毒技术研究进展

木质纤维素预处理会产生各种抑制物,严重影响后续的酶水解和微生物发酵。因此,对木质纤维素预处理液进行脱毒处理成为木质纤维素高效经济生物转化的前提条件之一。重点介绍了膜分离技术应用于木质纤维素预处理液的脱毒过程所取得的研究进展。这些膜分离技术包括膜萃取、膜吸附、纳滤、反渗透、电渗析、电去离子、膜电容脱盐、渗透汽化和膜蒸馏等。膜分离技术在木质纤维素预处理液脱毒领域具有十分广阔的应用前景。     

木质纤维素原料酶水解产乙醇工艺的研究进展

木质纤维素原料预处理后,经水解、发酵等过程,可生产乙醇作为清洁燃料,这大大提高了农业和林业废弃物的利用率,减轻了环境污染,并为经济的可持续发展提供了保证。目前木质纤维素酶水解因其具有明显优势而受到重视,被普遍研究和采用。综述了近年来木质纤维素原料的预处理方法、酶与水解技术、发酵工艺以及发酵耦合分离技术的最新研究成果。     

酵母对木质纤维素酸解物中抑制物的应答及菌株开发

木质纤维素稀酸预处理过程中产生的抑制物会干扰酵母细胞的生长和发酵。根据酵母对抑制物应答的特点,开发那些能够对抑制物原位脱毒的高耐受性菌株,是生物质乙醇转化工业可持续发展的关键。综述了木质纤维素稀酸预处理过程中抑制物的产生、分类、对酵母的影响以及酵母对其应答的特点,结合系统生物学和基因工程方法从酵母耐受的角度探讨了耐受性优势酵母菌株的开发。     

纤维素酶与木质纤维素生物降解转化的研究进展

利用纤维素酶将预处理后的秸秆降解成可发酵性单糖,然后发酵生产所需的液体燃料及化工产品的技术,对于我国解决能源、环境、人口就业等难题有着巨大的积极影响。在木质纤维素生物降解转化工艺中,减少纤维素酶用量及提高酶解效率是降低木质纤维素降解成本的关键。纤维素酶系和木质纤维素酶水解技术的改进需要深入了解纤维素酶系统的组成及其协同作用、纤维素酶的结构与功能以及纤维素酶的生产技术。将就以上几个方面的研究进展进行讨论,并深入探讨了纤维素酶糖化能力的评价方法。     

螺杆挤压技术在生物质预处理中的机遇与挑战

随着化石资源的日益枯竭和生态环境的不断恶化,可再生资源的开发和利用受到越来越多的重视。木质纤维素作为地球上最丰富的可再生生物质资源,具有广阔的开发利用前景。预处理技术作为木质纤维素类生物质资源利用的前提和关键,应当受到足够重视。主要介绍螺杆挤压技术在木质纤维素类生物质资源预处理领域的研究进展,分析影响螺杆预处理效果的因素,总结其预处理的主要原理,并对其今后的发展趋势进行了探讨。     

提高木质纤维素酶解糖化效率的研究进展

木质纤维素高效水解为可发酵糖是其在生物燃料及高附加值化学品转化过程中至关重要的环节。从环保的角度出发,水解方法中的酶解是木质纤维素被彻底降解而无环境污染的有效途径,并且酶水解反应糖损耗低、副产物少、条件温和,因此受到广泛关注。但木质纤维素的组成与结构极为复杂,加之纤维素酶存在稳定性差、寿命短、活性低等缺陷,致使酶解效率较低,酶解糖化成本过高,为此国内外学者对如何提高木质纤维素酶解效率开展诸多方面的研究,综述了近年来提高木质纤维素酶解效率研究取得的最新理论研究及工艺进展,并就木质纤维素的预处理、产酶菌株/技术、酶复配/重组、酶解助剂、酶固定、外场作用、酶回收重利用及酶解反应器多方面的研究情况进行了总结,进一步展望了木质纤维酶解糖化的发展方向。     

六种白腐菌预处理对毛白杨木材酶水解效果的影响

通过化学分析和酶水解试验,研究了不同的白腐菌对毛白杨的预处理效果及不同组分的降解对酶水解的影响。毛白杨木片经6种白腐菌预处理30d后,各组分都发生了降解,其中半纤维素的损失最为显著,Trametes ochracea C6888引起半纤维素降解率高达47.19%,其次是纤维素和酸不溶木素的降解。在后续酶水解过程中,6种白腐菌处理后的样品显示出不同的水解模式,菌株Trametes ochracea C6888、T. pubescens C7571和T. versicolor C6915预处理效果最为显著,还原糖得率在整个酶水解过程中一直高于对照,其中T. ochracea C6888在水解96h后还原糖得率达到15.93%,比未处理样品提高了25%。分析酸不溶木素降解率及半纤维素降解率与还原糖得率的关系发现,不同菌株在作用同一种基质时,预处理效果差异显著,木质素和半纤维素的脱除都会影响木质纤维素的酶水解。     

木质纤维素生物质预处理研究现状

预处理是木质纤维素生物质转化为燃料乙醇的关键步骤,综述了现有常见预处理技术的国内外研究现状,同时分析比较了各处理技术的优缺点,并对今后木质纤维素生物质预处理的主要研究方向进行了展望,以期为木质纤维素生物质转化条件的优化提供参考。     

青霉生产木质纤维素降解酶系的研究进展

木质纤维素降解酶系的高效生产是实现植物生物质大规模生物炼制的重要支撑。就地生产木质纤维素降解酶,有助于降低其使用成本,提高技术经济效益。青霉是自然界常见的木质纤维素降解真菌,可以合成分泌种类多样、组分齐全的木质纤维素降解酶系,已被应用于纤维素酶制剂的工业生产。文中从就地生产降解酶,为木质纤维素生物炼制构建“糖平台”的角度,综述了青霉木质纤维素降解酶系的性质、菌株遗传改造及发酵工艺的研究进展。     

Hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials for ethanol production: a review

Lignocellulosic biomass can be utilized to produce ethanol, a promising alternative energy source for the limited crude oil. There are mainly two processes involved in the conversion: hydrolysis of cellulose in the lignocellulosic biomass to produce reducing sugars, and fermentation of the sugars to ethanol. The cost of ethanol production from lignocellulosic materials is relatively high based on current technologies, and the main challenges are the low yield and high cost of the hydrolysis process. Considerable research efforts have been made to improve the hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials. Pretreatment of lignocellulosic materials to remove lignin and hemicellulose can significantly enhance the hydrolysis of cellulose. Optimization of the cellulase enzymes and the enzyme loading can also improve the hydrolysis. Simultaneous saccharification and fermentation effectively removes glucose, which is an inhibitor to cellulase activity, thus increasing the yield and rate of cellulose hydrolysis.     

Evaluation of pretreatment methods for lignocellulosic ethanol production from energy cane variety L 79-1002

Approximately half of the 80 billion tons of crop produced annually around the world remains as residue that could serve as a renewable resource to produce valuable products such as ethanol and butanol. Ethanol produced from lignocellulosic biomass is a promising renewable alternative to diminishing oil and gas liquid fuels. Sugarcane is an important industry in Louisiana. The recently released variety of “energy cane” has great potential to sustain a competitive sugarcane industry. It has been demonstrated that fuel-grade ethanol can be produced from post harvest sugarcane residue in the past, but optimized ethanol production was not achieved. Optimization of the fermentation process requires efficient pretreatment to release cellulose and hemicellulose from lignocellulosic complex of plant fiber. Determining optimal pretreatment techniques for fermentation is essential for the success of lignocellulosic ethanol production process. The purpose of this study was to evaluate three pretreatment methods for the energy cane variety L 79-1002 for maximum lignocellulosic ethanol production. The pretreatments include alkaline pretreatment, dilute acid hydrolysis, and solid-state fungal pretreatment process using brown rot and white rot fungi. Pretreated biomass was enzymatically saccharified and subjected to fermentation using a recombinant Escherichia coli FBR5. The results revealed that all pretreatment processes produced ethanol. However, the best result was observed in dilute acid hydrolysis followed by alkaline pretreatment and solid-state fungal pretreatment.     

Simulation of integrated first and second generation bioethanol production from sugarcane: comparison between different biomass pretreatment methods

Sugarcane bagasse is used as a fuel in conventional bioethanol production, providing heat and power for the plant; therefore, the amount of surplus bagasse available for use as raw material for second generation bioethanol production is related to the energy consumption of the bioethanol production process. Pentoses and lignin, byproducts of the second generation bioethanol production process, may be used as fuels, increasing the amount of surplus bagasse. In this work, simulations of the integrated bioethanol production process from sugarcane, surplus bagasse and trash were carried out. Selected pre-treatment methods followed, or not, by a delignification step were evaluated. The amount of lignocellulosic materials available for hydrolysis in each configuration was calculated assuming that 50% of sugarcane trash is recovered from the field. An economic risk analysis was carried out; the best results for the integrated first and second generation ethanol production process were obtained for steam explosion pretreatment, high solids loading for hydrolysis and 24–48 h hydrolysis. The second generation ethanol production process must be improved (e.g., decreasing required investment, improving yields and developing pentose fermentation to ethanol) in order for the integrated process to be more economically competitive.     

Fungal pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass

Pretreatment is a crucial step in the conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to fermentable sugars and biofuels. Compared to thermal/chemical pretreatment, fungal pretreatment reduces the recalcitrance of lignocellulosic biomass by lignin-degrading microorganisms and thus potentially provides an environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient pretreatment technology for biofuel production. This paper provides an overview of the current state of fungal pretreatment by white rot fungi for biofuel production. The specific topics discussed are: 1) enzymes involved in biodegradation during the fungal pretreatment; 2) operating parameters governing performance of the fungal pretreatment; 3) the effect of fungal pretreatment on enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol production; 4) efforts for improving enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol production through combinations of fungal pretreatment and physical/chemical pretreatment; 5) the treatment of lignocellulosic biomass with lignin-degrading enzymes isolated from fungal pretreatment, with a comparison to fungal pretreatment; 6) modeling, reactor design, and scale-up of solid state fungal pretreatment; and 7) the limitations and future perspective of this technology.     

Pretreatment and Lignocellulosic Chemistry

Lignocellulosic materials such as wood, grass, and agricultural and forest residues are promising alternative energy resources that can be utilized to produce ethanol. The yield of ethanol production from native lignocellulosic material is relatively low due to its native recalcitrance, which is attributed to, in part, lignin content/structure, hemicelluloses, cellulose crystallinity, and other factors. Pretreatment of lignocellulosic materials is required to overcome this recalcitrance. The goal of pretreatment is to alter the physical features and chemical composition/structure of lignocellulosic materials, thus making cellulose more accessible to enzymatic hydrolysis for sugar conversion. Various pretreatment technologies to reduce recalcitrance and to increase sugar yield have been developed during the past two decades. This review examines the changes in lignocellulosic structure primarily in cellulose and hemicellulose during the most commonly applied pretreatment technologies including dilute acid pretreatment, hydrothermal pretreatment, and alkaline pretreatment.     

Process integration possibilities for biodiesel production from palm oil using ethanol obtained from lignocellulosic residues of oil palm industry

In this paper, integration possibilities for production of biodiesel and bioethanol using a single source of biomass as a feedstock (oil palm) were explored through process simulation. The oil extracted from Fresh Fruit Bunches was considered as the feedstock for biodiesel production. An extractive reaction process is proposed for transesterification reaction using in situ produced ethanol, which is obtained from two types of lignocellulosic residues of palm industry (Empty Fruit Bunches and Palm Press Fiber). Several ways of integration were analyzed. The integration of material flows between ethanol and biodiesel production lines allowed a reduction in unit energy costs down to 3.4%, whereas the material and energy integration leaded to 39.8% decrease of those costs. The proposed integrated configuration is an important option when the technology for ethanol production from biomass reaches such a degree of maturity that its production costs be comparable with those of grain or cane ethanol.     

Bio-ethanol--the fuel of tomorrow from the residues of today

The increased concern for the security of the oil supply and the negative impact of fossil fuels on the environment, particularly greenhouse gas emissions, has put pressure on society to find renewable fuel alternatives. The most common renewable fuel today is ethanol produced from sugar or grain (starch); however, this raw material base will not be sufficient. Consequently, future large-scale use of ethanol will most certainly have to be based on production from lignocellulosic materials. This review gives an overview of the new technologies required and the advances achieved in recent years to bring lignocellulosic ethanol towards industrial production. One of the major challenges is to optimize the integration of process engineering, fermentation technology, enzyme engineering and metabolic engineering.     

Efficient chemical and enzymatic saccharification of the lignocellulosic residue from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Agave tequilana</Emphasis> bagasse to produce ethanol by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pichia caribbica</Emphasis>

Bagasse of Agave tequilana (BAT) is the residual lignocellulosic waste that remains from tequila production. In this study we characterized the chemical composition of BAT, which was further saccharified and fermented to produce ethanol. BAT was constituted by cellulose (42%), hemicellulose (20%), lignin (15%), and other (23%). Saccharification of BAT was carried out at 147°C with 2% sulfuric acid for 15 min, yielding 25.8 g/l of fermentable sugars, corresponding to 36.1% of saccharificable material (cellulose and hemicellulose contents, w/w). The remaining lignocellulosic material was further hydrolyzed by commercial enzymes, ~8.2% of BAT load was incubated for 72 h at 40°C rendering 41 g/l of fermentable sugars corresponding to 73.6% of the saccharificable material (w/w). Mathematic surface response analysis of the acid and enzymatic BAT hydrolysis was used for process optimization. The results showed a satisfactory correlation (R ² = 0.90) between the obtained and predicted responses. The native yeast Pichia caribbica UM-5 was used to ferment sugar liquors from both acid and enzymatic hydrolysis to ethanol yielding 50 and 87%, respectively. The final optimized process generated 8.99 g ethanol/50 g of BAT, corresponding to an overall 56.75% of theoretical ethanol (w/w). Thus, BAT may be employed as a lignocellulosic raw material for bioethanol production and can contribute to BAT residue elimination from environment.     

Laccase detoxification of steam-exploded wheat straw for second generation bioethanol

In this work we compared the efficiency of a laccase treatment performed on steam-exploded wheat straw pretreated under soft conditions (water impregnation) or harsh conditions (impregnation with diluted acid). The effect of several enzymatic treatment parameters (pH, time of incubation, laccase origin and loading) was analysed. The results obtained indicated that severity conditions applied during steam explosion have an influence on the efficiency of detoxification. A reduction of the toxic effect of phenolic compounds by laccase polymerization of free phenols was demonstrated. Laccase treatment of steam-exploded wheat straw reduced sugar recovery after enzymatic hydrolysis, and it should be better performed after hydrolysis with cellulases. The fermentability of hydrolysates was greatly improved by the laccase treatment in all the samples. Our results demonstrate the action of phenolic compounds as fermentation inhibitors, and the advantages of a laccase treatment to increase the ethanol production from steam-exploded wheat straw.