Glucose Production from Biomass–Kinetics, Thermodynamics and Catalysis

Dear Colleagues,

Glucose from biomass is the economic driver for the upcoming biorefinery.  Among the three vital components of biomass, namely, cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, cellulose forms the purest source of glucose.  Cellullose, a linear biopolymer of glucose, constitutes the major fraction (30-40 wt.%) of biomass.  Selective depolymerization or hydrolysis of cellulose leads to the formation of glucose.  However, owing to the extensive hydrogen bonding network (intermolecular and intramolecular) prevailing in the cellulose, hydrolysis of cellulose is tough and indeed it is two orders of magnitude tougher than the hydrolysis of starch. Thus, selective production of glucose from ellulose is a challenge.  Extensive research efforts are currently devoted to the development of solid acid catalysts that could substitute mineral acids like HCl and H₂SO₄ for the hydrolysis of cellulose to glucose.  In addition, unconventional activation techniques like microwave irradiation, sonochemical irradiation and electricity are used as means to accelerate the selective production of glucose from biomass.  Biomass fractionation to cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin comprise of the vital step towards the commercialization of glucose production from cellulose.  Once the know-how for the selective,  atom-efficient and environmentally benign glucose production process is available, diversification of glucose to many important biochemical, biofertilizers, biofuels and biomaterials can be accomplished with ease and spontaneity.  Any successful process for glucose production from biomass must address the three key aspects of the chemical/biochemical conversion process, namely, kinetics, thermodynamics and catalysis and this forms the core of the current Special Issue.  We do hope enthusiastic contribution from the scientific fraternity around the globe for making the know-how to produce glucose at commercial scale available for the upcoming biorefinery facility.

Dr. Michael Renz
Dr. Indra Neel Pulidindi
Dr. Santhosh Kumar Koppula
Dr. Pankaj Sharma
Dr. Vaishali Suthar
Prof. Dr. Aharon Gedanken
Guest Editors

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