NREL Breaks Down Walls for Biofuels

PhysOrg.com
November 30, 2009 by Heather Lammers Enlarge

(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and ethanol producers are racing to come up with ways to make ethanol from cellulosic biomass that are cheaper and easier to produce than current methods. But they are hitting a wall. Cell walls in plants are making the production of cellulosic ethanol a challenge. So researchers are creating their own computer program to help model and break down the tiny fibers of cellulose -- or fibrils -- found in plant cells.

Although ethanol is becoming more available to consumers, NREL is working closely with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to meet a quickly approaching goal to produce competitively priced ethanol for $1.50 per gallon by 2012. Why the rush? DOE believes this is the price at which ethanol will be able to go head-to-head with gasoline while the U.S. strives to reduce our dependence on oil. In addition, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (PDF 821 KB) requires that the U.S. use 15 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2012. All of this means the U.S. needs to find ways to make more ethanol and fast. To help accomplish this goal, NREL researchers are looking at how to make cellulosic ethanol a cheaper, quicker reality.

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