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JournalISSN: 1754-6834

Biotechnology for Biofuels 

Springer Science+Business Media
About: Biotechnology for Biofuels is an academic journal. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Cellulase & Lignocellulosic biomass. It has an ISSN identifier of 1754-6834. It is also open access. Over the lifetime, 2472 publications have been published receiving 105577 citations.


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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Four different techniques incorporating X-ray diffraction and solid-state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) were compared using eight different cellulose preparations and it was found that the simplest method, which is also the most widely used, and which involves measurement of just two heights in the X- Ray diffractogram, produced significantly higher crystallinity values than did the other methods.
Abstract: Although measurements of crystallinity index (CI) have a long history, it has been found that CI varies significantly depending on the choice of measurement method. In this study, four different techniques incorporating X-ray diffraction and solid-state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) were compared using eight different cellulose preparations. We found that the simplest method, which is also the most widely used, and which involves measurement of just two heights in the X-ray diffractogram, produced significantly higher crystallinity values than did the other methods. Data in the literature for the cellulose preparation used (Avicel PH-101) support this observation. We believe that the alternative X-ray diffraction (XRD) and NMR methods presented here, which consider the contributions from amorphous and crystalline cellulose to the entire XRD and NMR spectra, provide a more accurate measure of the crystallinity of cellulose. Although celluloses having a high amorphous content are usually more easily digested by enzymes, it is unclear, based on studies published in the literature, whether CI actually provides a clear indication of the digestibility of a cellulose sample. Cellulose accessibility should be affected by crystallinity, but is also likely to be affected by several other parameters, such as lignin/hemicellulose contents and distribution, porosity, and particle size. Given the methodological dependency of cellulose CI values and the complex nature of cellulase interactions with amorphous and crystalline celluloses, we caution against trying to correlate relatively small changes in CI with changes in cellulose digestibility. In addition, the prediction of cellulase performance based on low levels of cellulose conversion may not include sufficient digestion of the crystalline component to be meaningful.

2,522 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This review focuses on inhibitors from lignocellulosic feedstocks and how conditioning of slurries and hydrolysates can be used to alleviate inhibition problems.
Abstract: Bioconversion of lignocellulose by microbial fermentation is typically preceded by an acidic thermochemical pretreatment step designed to facilitate enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose. Substances formed during the pretreatment of the lignocellulosic feedstock inhibit enzymatic hydrolysis as well as microbial fermentation steps. This review focuses on inhibitors from lignocellulosic feedstocks and how conditioning of slurries and hydrolysates can be used to alleviate inhibition problems. Novel developments in the area include chemical in-situ detoxification by using reducing agents, and methods that improve the performance of both enzymatic and microbial biocatalysts.

1,180 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: These results confirmed the capability of C. basilensis B-8 to promote KL degradation and provide a theoretical basis for research into the mechanisms of lignin degradation as well as a practical basis for biofuel production using lignIn materials.
Abstract: Lignin materials are abundant and among the most important potential sources for biofuel production. Development of an efficient lignin degradation process has considerable potential for the production of a variety of chemicals, including bioethanol. However, lignin degradation using current methods is inefficient. Given their immense environmental adaptability and biochemical versatility, bacterial could be used as a valuable tool for the rapid degradation of lignin. Kraft lignin (KL) is a polymer by-product of the pulp and paper industry resulting from alkaline sulfide treatment of lignocellulose, and it has been widely used for lignin-related studies. Beta-proteobacterium Cupriavidus basilensis B-8 isolated from erosive bamboo slips displayed substantial KL degradation capability. With initial concentrations of 0.5–6 g L-1, at least 31.3% KL could be degraded in 7 days. The maximum degradation rate was 44.4% at the initial concentration of 2 g L-1. The optimum pH and temperature for KL degradation were 7.0 and 30°C, respectively. Manganese peroxidase (MnP) and laccase (Lac) demonstrated their greatest level of activity, 1685.3 U L-1 and 815.6 U L-1, at the third and fourth days, respectively. Many small molecule intermediates were formed during the process of KL degradation, as determined using GC-MS analysis. In order to perform metabolic reconstruction of lignin degradation in this bacterium, a draft genome sequence for C. basilensis B-8 was generated. Genomic analysis focused on the catabolic potential of this bacterium against several lignin-derived compounds. These analyses together with sequence comparisons predicted the existence of three major metabolic pathways: β-ketoadipate, phenol degradation, and gentisate pathways. These results confirmed the capability of C. basilensis B-8 to promote KL degradation. Whole genomic sequencing and systematic analysis of the C. basilensis B-8 genome identified degradation steps and intermediates from this bacterial-mediated KL degradation method. Our findings provide a theoretical basis for research into the mechanisms of lignin degradation as well as a practical basis for biofuel production using lignin materials.

1,173 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A new class introduced in the CAZy database is named “Auxiliary Activities” in order to accommodate a range of enzyme mechanisms and substrates related to lignocellulose conversion and provides a better coverage of the full extent of the lignin degradation machinery.
Abstract: Since its inception, the carbohydrate-active enzymes database (CAZy; http://www.cazy.org ) has described the families of enzymes that cleave or build complex carbohydrates, namely the glycoside hydrolases (GH), the polysaccharide lyases (PL), the carbohydrate esterases (CE), the glycosyltransferases (GT) and their appended non-catalytic carbohydrate-binding modules (CBM). The recent discovery that members of families CBM33 and family GH61 are in fact lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMO), demands a reclassification of these families into a suitable category. Because lignin is invariably found together with polysaccharides in the plant cell wall and because lignin fragments are likely to act in concert with (LPMO), we have decided to join the families of lignin degradation enzymes to the LPMO families and launch a new CAZy class that we name “Auxiliary Activities” in order to accommodate a range of enzyme mechanisms and substrates related to lignocellulose conversion. Comparative analyses of these auxiliary activities in 41 fungal genomes reveal a pertinent division of several fungal groups and subgroups combining their phylogenetic origin and their nutritional mode (white vs. brown rot). The new class introduced in the CAZy database extends the traditional CAZy families, and provides a better coverage of the full extent of the lignocellulose breakdown machinery.

966 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The majority of crude glycerol is used as feedstock for production of other value-added chemicals, followed by animal feeds, and the value- added utilization opportunities of crude Glycerol are reviewed.
Abstract: Biodiesel is a promising alternative, and renewable, fuel. As its production increases, so does production of the principle co-product, crude glycerol. The effective utilization of crude glycerol will contribute to the viability of biodiesel. In this review, composition and quality factors of crude glycerol are discussed. The value-added utilization opportunities of crude glycerol are reviewed. The majority of crude glycerol is used as feedstock for production of other value-added chemicals, followed by animal feeds.

900 citations

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Performance
Metrics
No. of papers from the Journal in previous years
YearPapers
2021224
2020208
2019300
2018336
2017309
2016266