Biofuels and Bioenergy

The latest arrival in the world of Industrial Biotechnology is production of Bio-ethanol from Lignocellulosic and Cereal based biomass with the assistance of Biofuel Enzymes.

The Bioconversion of lignocellulosic biomass to ethanol involves the release of sugars from biomass. These materials can be divided into cellulose and hemicelluloses. Cellulose and hemicelluloses contain sugars in a form that can be converted by enzymes to fermentable products. Thus suitable Cellulase / Hemicellulase enzymes are used to effectively degrade and convert these biopolymers.

The Bioconversion of cereal based biomass involves liquefaction and saccharification of starch matter to glucose which can be fermented to produce ethanol. Thermostable Alpha Amylase Enzymes and Glucoamylase Enzymes are used in the said two step process. Xylanase Enzymes may be used to reduce the viscosity in liquefaction process.

A novel approach to production of Bio-Gas from waste biomass is pre-treatment with selective hydrolytic enzymes to aid in the initial hydrolysis step which is commonly acheived with the help of anaerobic bacteria capable of producing the needed hydrolytic enzymes. The enzymatic pre-treatment using a select blend of enzymes depending upon the composition of the biomass enables to catalyze the process which otherwise depends on the propogation of the micro-organisms and the turn around time involved. Such a treatment complements the existing processing steps providing for better nutrient availability to the flora of micro-organisms involved in the anaerobic reaction.