Hemicelluloses for fuel ethanol-A good source of information but what else can we get?

A good summary in this review paper with the following aspects:

• various hemicelluloses structures present in lignocellulosic biomass
•  the range of pre-treatment and hydrolysis options including the enzymatic ones
•  the role of different microbial strains on process integration aiming to reach a meaningful consolidated bioprocessing
• the recent trends, technical barriers and perspectives of future development are highlighted.

So far, all the review paper on biomass pretreatments cover almost the same: list the acid, alkaline, wet oxidation, organosolv, ionic liquids pretreatments and their advantages and disadvantages, based on which comes a conclusion: no ‘‘ideal” pre-treatment.

 Actually there do exist good pretreatments, which are effective under low temperature and less by-products. In addition, a milder pretreatment with an efficient process configuration is able to overcome some drawbacks.

The pretreatment I have is conducted at a temperature lower than 120 C and near neutral alkaline conditions, which significantly reduce up-front capital cost and operational cost as well as the chemicals required for neutralization. In addition, a simple process configuration is used for more practical application, which will make it more economical competitive.

My advice: do not just look at these review papers when developing your own pretreatments. They are good sources and references. Understand the fundamentals first and jump out of the box. Remember: be simple for the process.