Journal
NEW PHYTOLOGIST
Volume 209, Issue 4, Pages 1366-1381Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/nph.13684
Keywords
biofuel; cell wall; cellulose; ferulic acid; hemicellulose; lignin; saccharification; xylan
Categories
Funding
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)
- European Commission's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) project Renewall [211982]
- BBSRC [BB/G016178, BB/G016194]
- BBSRC [BB/G016178/1] Funding Source: UKRI
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [BB/G016178/1, 984013] Funding Source: researchfish
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The aim of producing sustainable liquid biofuels and chemicals from lignocellulosic biomass remains high on the sustainability agenda, but is challenged by the costs of producing fermentable sugars from these materials. Sugars from plant biomass can be fermented to alcohols or even alkanes, creating a liquid fuel in which carbon released on combustion is balanced by its photosynthetic capture. Large amounts of sugar are present in the woody, nonfood parts of crops and could be used for fuel production without compromising global food security. However, the sugar in woody biomass is locked up in the complex and recalcitrant lignocellulosic plant cell wall, making it difficult and expensive to extract. In this paper, wereview what is known about the major polymeric components of woody plant biomass, with an emphasis on the molecular interactions that contribute to its recalcitrance to enzymatic digestion. In addition, we review the extensive research that has been carried out in order to understand and reduce lignocellulose recalcitrance and enable more cost-effective production of fuel from woody plant biomass.
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