New Process Touted as Breakthrough for Cellulosic Ethanol

May 20th, 2009 by Dave Tyler

Mascoma Corp. says it has found a way to remove several steps from the process of making cellulosic ethanol, cutting the cost and time it takes to make the fuel, while increasing yields.

[social_buttons] The Lebanon, N.H.-based company says it has made advances in consolidated bioprocessing, a process that uses engineered microorganism to make ethanol from cellulosic biomass, such as grasses, stalks and wood waste. Mascoma’s CBP process eliminates the need to produce costly cellulase enzymes, by producing the cellulase and ethanol in a single step.

There are two parts to the advance, the company, which grew out of research conducted at Dartmouth College, said.

The first is the use of thermophilic bacteria, or bacteria that grow at high tempertures. Mascoma says it genetically modified a bacteria called Clostridium thermocellum, and was able to produce achieve a weight to volume ratio of 6 percent ethanol, a 60 percent increase over results from a year ago. Strains of the bacteria also helped reduce unwanted acid byproducts and can convert cellulose at a higher rate, without the help of cellulase.

The second advance used recombinant cellulolytic yeasts which further reduced the need to add cellulase to the process. The yeast cut down the use of cellulase in the conversion of hardwood to ethanol by 2.5 fold and eliminated the need for cellulase in processes that convert waste paper slude to ethanol, the company said.

Cellulosic ethanol has been held out as a better alternative to corn-based ethanol because of the potential for greater energy yields from the crops used to manufacture it. Mascoma says its developments will usher in an age where billions of gallons of the stuff can be produced commercially.

“These advances enable the reduction in operating and capital costs required for cost effective commercial production of ethanol, bringing Mascoma substantially closer to commercialization,” said Jim Flatt, executive vice president of Research, Development and Operations at Mascoma.

Mascoma officials told Fox News that they expect their Rome, N.Y. test facility to be produce larger quantities of ethanol via this process later this year. The company presented the findings earlier this month as part of the 31st Symposium on Biotechnology for Fuels and Chemicals in San Francisco. Mascoma also has a deal with General Motors to help promote its research efforts.

Photo credit: Phlora’s flickr stream, via a Creative Commons License.

Keep up to date with all the hottest cleantech news by subscribing to our (free) cleantech newsletter, or keep an eye on sector-specific news by getting our (also free) solar energy newsletter, electric vehicle newsletter, or wind energy newsletter.

Tags: bacteria, cellulosic ethanol, Ethanol, fuels, Mascoma

About the Author

Dave Tyler Dave has over a decade of experience in journalism covering a wide variety of topics. He spent 7 years on the business beat for the Rochester (N.Y) Democrat and Chronicle, covering technology issues including the state's growing green economy. When he's not writing, you'll find Dave enjoying his family, being a bit of a music snob, and praying that the Notre Dame football team can get its act together. He lives in Rochester.

Steve

Hey Ben. I’m interested in the nutrient cycle, and this does not sustain it. Go read “The Bottomless Well” and you will see how ridiculous it is to grow crops for fuel. I’m for nuclear energy and electric transportation. Solves the whole terrorist and global warming problems. Can we safely get rid of the waste? To think that we can’t questions the ingenuity of man. Try not to think so small Ben.
Steve

Hey Ben. I’m interested in the nutrient cycle, and this does not sustain it. Go read “The Bottomless Well” and you will see how ridiculous it is to grow crops for fuel. I’m for nuclear energy and electric transportation. Solves the whole terrorist and global warming problems. Can we safely get rid of the waste? To think that we can’t questions the ingenuity of man. Try not to think so small Ben.
Steve

Hey Ben. I’m interested in the nutrient cycle, and this does not sustain it. Go read “The Bottomless Well” and you will see how ridiculous it is to grow crops for fuel. I’m for nuclear energy and electric transportation. Solves the whole terrorist and global warming problems. Can we safely get rid of the waste? To think that we can’t questions the ingenuity of man. Try not to think so small Ben.
Steve

Hey Ben. I’m interested in the nutrient cycle, and this does not sustain it. Go read “The Bottomless Well” and you will see how ridiculous it is to grow crops for fuel. I’m for nuclear energy and electric transportation. Solves the whole terrorist and global warming problems. Can we safely get rid of the waste? To think that we can’t questions the ingenuity of man. Try not to think so small Ben.
Chip Daigle

National Renewable Energy Lab says they can make Cellulosic Ethanol for $2.30/Gallon. Zeachem says they can do it for $1/Gallon. So Why isn’t Mascoma producing Cellulosic Ethanol Yet? I don’t trust them. I think they are diliberately holding off producing Cellulosic Ethanol so they can get a Big Fat Obama Wedding/Bailout. I think this could be Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac/ACORN Toxic Loans all over again. Another $Trillion Bank robbery from the Taxpayers. And Some people in the media were mad at Enron $Billion Bank robbery and now we find out they were involved in Cap and Trade.
Chip Daigle

National Renewable Energy Lab says they can make Cellulosic Ethanol for $2.30/Gallon. Zeachem says they can do it for $1/Gallon. So Why isn’t Mascoma producing Cellulosic Ethanol Yet? I don’t trust them. I think they are diliberately holding off producing Cellulosic Ethanol so they can get a Big Fat Obama Wedding/Bailout. I think this could be Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac/ACORN Toxic Loans all over again. Another $Trillion Bank robbery from the Taxpayers. And Some people in the media were mad at Enron $Billion Bank robbery and now we find out they were involved in Cap and Trade.
Chip Daigle

National Renewable Energy Lab says they can make Cellulosic Ethanol for $2.30/Gallon. Zeachem says they can do it for $1/Gallon. So Why isn’t Mascoma producing Cellulosic Ethanol Yet? I don’t trust them. I think they are diliberately holding off producing Cellulosic Ethanol so they can get a Big Fat Obama Wedding/Bailout. I think this could be Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac/ACORN Toxic Loans all over again. Another $Trillion Bank robbery from the Taxpayers. And Some people in the media were mad at Enron $Billion Bank robbery and now we find out they were involved in Cap and Trade.
Pingback: SUNfiltered : Fresh culture daily. » Blog Archive » Green tech finds (5/21/09)
ben

Steve, your right!! It’s much better to spare the switchgrasses and paper sludges of the world than to take money out of terrorists pockets and possibly save a few thousand lives. Your brilliant!!
ben

Steve, your right!! It’s much better to spare the switchgrasses and paper sludges of the world than to take money out of terrorists pockets and possibly save a few thousand lives. Your brilliant!!
ben

Steve, your right!! It’s much better to spare the switchgrasses and paper sludges of the world than to take money out of terrorists pockets and possibly save a few thousand lives. Your brilliant!!
ben

What about using Algae as opposed to wood chips as a feedstock? It grows inordinately quickly, and doesn’t need arable land. It also doesn’t possess lignin, which is the tough material in land based plants that has to be broken down before the cellulose in the plants can be utilized. It is very possible that no additional cellulase would be needed if Mascoma used their bactria/yeast to process it, and you could grow as much as you need.
ben

What about using Algae as opposed to wood chips as a feedstock? It grows inordinately quickly, and doesn’t need arable land. It also doesn’t possess lignin, which is the tough material in land based plants that has to be broken down before the cellulose in the plants can be utilized. It is very possible that no additional cellulase would be needed if Mascoma used their bactria/yeast to process it, and you could grow as much as you need.
Steve

Maybe we could make ethanol out of everything living? Just before winter, we could collect every piece of plant matter from the land and make it into ethanol. Then, because of the complete loss of humus in the soil, we could spread chemical fertilizer everywhere we harvested just so something might grow again. Then we’ll just do it again next year.
Steve

Maybe we could make ethanol out of everything living? Just before winter, we could collect every piece of plant matter from the land and make it into ethanol. Then, because of the complete loss of humus in the soil, we could spread chemical fertilizer everywhere we harvested just so something might grow again. Then we’ll just do it again next year.
Steve

Maybe we could make ethanol out of everything living? Just before winter, we could collect every piece of plant matter from the land and make it into ethanol. Then, because of the complete loss of humus in the soil, we could spread chemical fertilizer everywhere we harvested just so something might grow again. Then we’ll just do it again next year.