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Microbial Pretreatment of Biomass

Potential for Reducing Severity of Thermochemical Biomass Pretreatment

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Biotechnology for Fuels and Chemicals

Part of the book series: Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology ((ABAB))

Abstract

Typical pretreatment requires high-energy (steam and electricity) and corrosion-resistant, high-pressure reactors. A review of the literature suggests that fungal pretreatment could potentially lower the severity requirements of acid, temperature and time. These reductions in severity are also expected to result in less biomass degradation and consequently lower inhibitor concentrations compared to conventional thermochemical pretreatment. Furthermore, potential advantages of fungal pretreatment of agricultural residues, such as corn stover, are suggested by its effectiveness in improving the cellulose digestibility of many types of forage fiber and agricultural wastes. Our preliminary tests show a three- to five-fold improvement in enzymatic cellulose digestibility of corn stover after pretreatment with Cyathus stercoreus; and a ten- to 100-fold reduction in shear force needed to obtain the same shear rate of 3.2 to 7 rev/s, respectively, after pretreatment with Phanerochaete chrysosporium.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 1617 Cole Boulevard, Golden, CO, 80401, USA

    Fred A. Keller, Jenny E. Hamilton & Quang A. Nguyen

Authors
  1. Fred A. Keller
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  2. Jenny E. Hamilton
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  3. Quang A. Nguyen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Quang A. Nguyen .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA

    Brian H. Davison (Conference Chair) & James W. Lee (Conference Chair) & 

  2. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA

    Mark Finkelstein (Conference Co-Chair) & James D. McMillan (Conference Co-Chair) & 

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© 2003 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Keller, F.A., Hamilton, J.E., Nguyen, Q.A. (2003). Microbial Pretreatment of Biomass. In: Davison, B.H., Lee, J.W., Finkelstein, M., McMillan, J.D. (eds) Biotechnology for Fuels and Chemicals. Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-0057-4_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-0057-4_3

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4612-6592-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4612-0057-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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