Research: Microbes are an option for ethanol, other biofuels

Biomass Magazine June 2009
By Lisa Gibson
Posted May 22, 2009, at 11:55 a.m. CST

Microbes may be a big player in the development of renewable fuels from cellulosic materials, researchers say, and experiments are being conducted into how they can be used to convert sugars to ethanol and mixed-generation fuels. The topic was discussed at the recent general meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.

Manufacturing ethanol from corn competes with food crops and has been accused of being responsible for rising food prices, according to the ASM. “The value of using nonfood crops is it will mitigate the significant food-versus-fuel debate,” said Tim Donohue, professor of bacteriology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and director of the U.S. DOE’s Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center.

Researchers are looking at alternative biomass as feedstocks for microorganisms to ferment into ethanol, and the research has demonstrated the concept does work, Donohue said. The most attractive is lignocellulosic biomass—wood residues, municipal paper waste, energy crops, or nonedible parts of corn such as cobs, stalks and stover.

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