Biotechnological valorization potential indicator for lignocellulosic materials

This report introduces the biotechnological valorization potential indicator (BVPI) concept, a metric to measure the degree of suitability of lignocellulosic materials to be used as feedstock in a biorefinery framework. This indicator groups the impact of the main factors influencing upgrade‐ability, both the biological/chemical nature of the materials, and the economical, technological and geographical factors. The BVPI was applied to the identification of the most relevant opportunities and constraints pertaining to the lignocellulosic by‐products from the Portuguese agro‐industrial cluster. Several by‐products were identified with a high valorization potential, e.g., rice husks, brewerýs spent grain, tomato pomace, carob pulp, de‐alcoholized grape bagasse, and extracted olive bagasse, that would greatly benefit from the further development of specific biotechnology processes, specifically concerning the upgrade of their hemicellulosic fraction.

[1]  B. Kamm,et al.  Principles of biorefineries , 2004, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

[2]  A. Corma,et al.  Synthesis of transportation fuels from biomass: chemistry, catalysts, and engineering. , 2006, Chemical reviews.

[3]  Cardona Alzate,et al.  Energy consumption analysis of integrated flowsheets for production of fuel ethanol from lignocellulosic biomass , 2006 .

[4]  E. Pye,et al.  The lignol approach to biorefining of woody biomass to produce ethanol and chemicals , 2005, Applied biochemistry and biotechnology.

[5]  B. Dale,et al.  Global potential bioethanol production from wasted crops and crop residues , 2004 .

[6]  David R Shonnard,et al.  Comparative Life‐Cycle Assessments for Biomass‐to‐Ethanol Production from Different Regional Feedstocks , 2008, Biotechnology progress.

[7]  M. Galbe,et al.  A review of the production of ethanol from softwood , 2002, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

[8]  M. Ruth,et al.  Lignocellulosic Biomass to Ethanol Process Design and Economics Utilizing Co-Current Dilute Acid Prehydrolysis and Enzymatic Hydrolysis Current and Futuristic Scenarios , 1999 .

[9]  T. W. Jeffries,et al.  Bacteria engineered for fuel ethanol production: current status , 2003, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

[10]  M. Petit,et al.  Production and purification of a sugar syrup from carob pods , 1995 .

[11]  Q. A. Nguyen,et al.  Softwood Forest Thinnings as a Biomass Source for Ethanol Production: A Feasibility Study for California , 2000, Biotechnology progress.

[12]  A. Faaij,et al.  Ethanol from lignocellulosic biomass: techno-economic performance in short-, middle- and long-term , 2005 .

[13]  Merry Buckley,et al.  Microbial Energy Conversion , 2006 .

[14]  C. Wyman,et al.  Features of promising technologies for pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass. , 2005, Bioresource technology.

[15]  J. Lange.  Lignocellulose conversion: an introduction to chemistry, process and economics , 2007 .

[16]  D. Greer.  Realities, opportunities for cellulosic ethanol. , 2007 .

[17]  Robert D. Perlack,et al.  Biomass Energy Data Book: Edition 1 , 2006 .