Special Issue "Biofuels: Energy and Fuels, Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology and Environmental Sciences"

Guest Editor
Dr. Clifford Louime
FAMU BioEnergy Group, Technology Building D, Room 12, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL 32307, USA
Website: http://www.famu.edu/cesta/main/index.cfm/research/bioenergy/
E-Mail:
Interests: biofuels; biotic and abiotic stress; genomics; computational biology

Dear Colleagues,

The value of biomass as a sustainable source of energy and carbon has been heralded for years.

Despite the information available on enzyme systems and plant cell walls structure, application of this knowledge to biomass conversion into biofuels and useful chemicals has met with limited success.

The goal of this special issue is to examine the stand of the latest available technologies to ensure a sustainable commercial use of biomass wastes.

Dr. Clifford Louime
Guest Editor

Papers published in another special issue on a similar topic in 2007-2008: link

Submission

All papers should be submitted to energies@mdpi.com with copy to the guest editor. To be published continuously until the deadline and papers will be listed together at the special websites.

Submitted papers should not have been previously published nor be currently under consideration for publication elsewhere. All papers are refereed through a peer review process. A guide for authors, sample copies and other relevant information for submitting papers are available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a paper. Open Access publication fees are 300 CHF per paper. English correction fees (250 CHF) will be added in certain cases (550 CHF per paper for those papers that require extensive additional formatting and/or English corrections.).

Article Processing Charges (APC)

Article Processing Charges (APC) will be waived for well prepared manuscripts of invited papers. For the first two volumes of this new journal the APC are of 300 CHF (or 550 CHF per paper for those papers that require extensive additional formatting and/or English corrections).

Leading Research Articles and Reviews

• Adsul, M.G.; Bastawde, K.B.; Varma, A.J.; Gokhale; D.V. Strain improvement of Penicillium janthinellum NCIM 1171 for increased cellulase production. Bioresour. Technol. 2007, 98,1467-73. Epub 2006 Nov 13.
• Saha, B.C.; Cotta, M.A. Ethanol production from alkaline peroxide pretreated enzymatically saccharified wheat straw. Biotechnol Prog. 2006, 22, 449-53
• Rauscher, R.; Wurleitner, E.; Wacenovsky. C.; Aro, N.; Stricker, A.R.; Zeilinger, S.; Kubicek, C.P., Penttila, M.; Mach, R.L. Transcriptional regulation of xyn1, encoding xylanase I, in Hypocrea jecorina. Eukaryot. Cell, 2006, 5, 447-56.
• Old, L.A.; Lowes S.; Russell, R.R. Genomic variation in Streptococcus mutans: deletions affecting the multiple pathways of beta-glucoside metabolism. Oral Microbiol. Immunol. 2006, 21, 21-7.
• Baker, J.O.; McCarley, J.R.; Lovett, R.; Yu, C.H.; Adney, W.S.; Rignall, T.R.; Vinzant, T.B.; Decker, S.R.; Sakon, J.; Himmel, M.E. Catalytically enhanced endocellulase Cel5A from Acidothermus cellulolyticus. Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol. 2005, 121-124, 129-48.
• Wang, T.; Liu, X.; Yu, Q.; Zhang, X.; Qu, Y.; Gao, P.; Wang, T. Directed evolution for engineering pH profile of endoglucanase III from Trichoderma reesei.
• Biomol. Eng. 2005, 22, 89-94.
• Chand, P.; Aruna, A.; Maqsood, A.M.; Rao, L.V. Novel mutation method for increased cellulase production. J. Appl. Microbiol.2005, 98, 318-23.
• Zhou, W.; Irwin, D.C.; Escovar-Kousen, J.; Wilson, D.B. Kinetic studies of Thermobifida fusca Cel9A active site mutant enzymes. Biochemistry 2004, 43, 9655-63.
• Wilson, D.B. Studies of Thermobifida fusca plant cell wall degrading enzymes. Chem. Rec. 2004, 4, 72-82.
• Tellez-Valencia, A.; Sandoval, A.A.; Pedraza-Reyes, M. The non-catalytic amino acid Asp446 is essential for enzyme activity of the modular endocellulase Cel9 from Myxobacter sp. AL-1. Curr. Microbiol. 2003, 46, 307-10.
• Torney, F.; Moeller, L.; Scarpa, A.; Wang, K. Genetic engineering approaches to improve bioethanol production from maize. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2007 [Epub ahead of print].
• Service, R.F. Cellulosic ethanol. Biofuel researchers prepare to reap a new harvest. Science 2007, 16, 1488-91. No abstract available.
• Escovar-Kousen, J.M.; Wilson, D.; Irwin, D. Integration of computer modeling and initial studies of site-directed mutagenesis to improve cellulase activity on Cel9A from Thermobifida fusca. Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol. 2004, 113-116, 287-97.
• Stephanopoulos, G. Challenges in engineering microbes for biofuels production. Science 2007, 315, 801-4.
• Schubert, C. Can biofuels finally take center stage? Nat. Biotechnol. 2006, 24, 777-84.
• Hahn-Hagerdal, B.; Galbe, M.; Gorwa-Grauslund, M.F.; Liden, G.; Zacchi, G. Bio-ethanol--the fuel of tomorrow from the residues of today. Trends Biotechnol. 2006, 24, 549-56. Review.
• Farrell, A.E.; Plevin, R.J.; Turner, B.T.; Jones, A.D.; O'Hare, M.; Kammen, D.M. Ethanol can contribute to energy and environmental goals. Science 2006, 311, 506-8.
• Sticklen, M. Plant genetic engineering to improve biomass characteristics for biofuels. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2006, 17, 315-9. Review.
• Gray, K.A.; Zhao, L.; Emptage, M. Bioethanol. Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 2006, 10, 141-6. Review.
• Ragauskas, A.J.; Williams, C.K.; Davison, B.H.; Britovsek, G.; Cairney, J.; Eckert, C.A.; Frederick, W.J. Jr.; Hallett, J.P.; Leak, D.J.; Liotta, C.L.; Mielenz, J.R.; Murphy, R.; Templer, R.; Tschaplinski, T. The path forward for biofuels and biomaterials. Science2006, 311, 484-9. Review.
• Yinbo, Q.; Zhu, M.; Liu, K.; Bao, X.; Lin, J. Studies on cellulosic ethanol production for sustainable supply of liquid fuel in China. Biotechnol. J. 2006, 1, 1235-40. Review.
• Jeffries, T.W. Engineering yeasts for xylose metabolism. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2006, 17, 320-6. Review.
• Sticklen, M. Plant genetic engineering to improve biomass characteristics for biofuels. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2006, 17, 315-9. Review.
• Percival Zhang, Y.H.; Himmel, M.E.; Mielenz, J.R. Outlook for cellulase improvement: screening and selection strategies. Biotechnol. Adv. 2006, 24, 452-81. Review.
• Ward, O.P.; Singh, A. Bioethanol technology: developments and perspectives. Adv. Appl. Microbiol. 2002, 51, 53-80. Review.
• Lynd, L.R.; Weimer, P.J.; van Zyl, W.H.; Pretorius, I.S. Microbial cellulose utilization: fundamentals and biotechnology. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 2002, 66, 506-77. Review. Erratum in: Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 2002, 66, 739.
• Sun, Y.; Cheng, J. Hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials for ethanol production: a review. Bioresour. Technol. 2002, 83, 1-11. Review.
• Mielenz, J.R. Ethanol production from biomass: technology and commercialization status. Curr. Opin. Microbiol. 2001, 4, 324-9. Review.
• Bayer, E.A.; Shimon, L.J.; Shoham, Y.; Lamed, R. Cellulosomes-structure and ultrastructure. J. Struct. Biol. 1998, 124, 221-34. Review.
• Davies, G.J. Structural studies on cellulases. Biochem. Soc. Trans. 1998, 26, 167-73. Review.
• Gray, K.A.; Zhao, L.; Emptage, M. Bioethanol. Curr. Opin.Chem. Biol. 2006, 10, 141-6. Review.
• Lin, Y.; Tanaka, S. Ethanol fermentation from biomass resources: current state and prospects. Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 2006, 69, 627-42. Review.
• Louime, C.; Abazinge, M.; Johnson, E.; Latinwo, L.; Ikediobi, C. Location, formation and biosynthetic regulation of cellulases in the gliding bacteria Cytophaga hutchinsonii. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2006, 7, 1-11.
• Louime, C.; Abazinge, M.; Johnson, E.; Latinwo, L.Sugarcane: Is it the new biocellulosic substrate for the biomass industry. Florida Scientist 2006, 69, 44-48.

1. Biomass Characterization & Analysis
   
   • Characterization of biomass feedstock and products
   • Process design
   • Development of new methods and tools
2. Biochemical Conversion Technologies
   
   • Development of pretreatment technologies
   • Cellulase Enzyme Development: e.g. basic science underlying enzymatic hydrolysis
   • Strain Development: metabolic engineering techniques
3. Thermochemical Conversion Technologies
   • Gasification R&D
   • Pyrolysis processes
4. Biobased Product & Development
   • Discovery, improvement, and development of conversion technologies
   • Novel separation technologies
   • Quantifying the quality and performance of biobased products

Type of Paper: Article
Title: The Bioslurry Gasification Process for the Production of Organic Chemicals, Biosynfuels and Energy
Authors: E. Henrich, N. Dahmen and E. Dinjus
Affiliation: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Campus Nord, D-76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany; E-Mail: Gabriele.Schnabel@itc-cpv.fzk.de
Abstract: A thermo-chemical process for biomass conversion into organic chemicals, biosyn-fuels and energy is being developed at the KIT. Lignocellulosics like wood or straw are first liquefied by fast pyrolysis in many regional plants. The densified bioslurry products – a mix of pyrolysis condensates and char powder – are transported to a large central gasification and synthesis plant. The heated bioslurry is pumped into a pressurised entrained flow gasifier, atomised with technical oxygen and converted to an almost tar-free, low methane syngas. Syngas is a well known versatile inter-mediate for a selectively catalysed production of many chemicals and synfuels. The paper describes the process concept and the present development status.