Post by Mr. Clean on Mar 8, 2009 10:48:37 GMT -5
Verenium not only has the solution for creating low-carbon, low-cost cellulosic biofuels, it also has the first-mover advantage.
Verenium not only has the solution for creating low-carbon, low-cost cellulosic biofuels, it also has the first-mover advantage.The need for alternative fuels
The urgent need for cleaner automotive fuels is pushing the private sector to develop low-carbon alternatives. Cellulosic ethanol is widely recognized as one of the most promising ways to meet our need for clean fuels with dramatically lower energy inputs and net carbon emissions. Verenium is a leader in the development of cellulosic ethanol - a clean-burning fuel derived from canes, grasses, softwoods, and other biomass sources that are readily available and are not utilized for food.
The need for alternative fuels has led to new federal law mandating the production and use of billions of gallons of biofuels within the next decade. The market is vast. The first companies entering the market for next-generation cellulosic ethanol will be tapping into a multi-billion dollar market at the beginning of commercialization.
Verenium has Developed the Key Technology to Enable the Economic Conversion of Biomass to Ethanol
In 1995, Verenium, then Celunol, secured an exclusive license to commercialize proprietary cellulosic ethanol technology developed at the University of Florida. Working with the University and other academic and industry sources, including Dartmouth, Auburn, The University of Colorado, and the University of California at Davis, Verenium has continued to develop its unique technology to release the full sugar potential of cellulosic biomass.
Today, Verenium continues as an R&D leader in the cellulosic ethanol field. The company operates a laboratory in San Diego, California, as well as a research laboratory at its pilot plant in Jennings, Louisiana.
Converting Plant Sugar to Cellulosic Ethanol
The sugar in cellulosic biomass is locked up in the form of cellulose and hemicellulose. Cellulose contains glucose, the same type of sugar - six-carbon (C6) sugar - that is found in cornstarch and that can be fermented to ethanol using conventional yeasts. However, hemicellulose contains mainly non-glucose sugars-five-carbon (C5) sugars. Conventional yeasts cannot ferment most non-glucose sugars to ethanol with commercially acceptable yields.
Verenium’s technology enables almost complete conversion of all the sugars found in cellulosic biomass. This efficiency advantage, combined with the low input cost of cellulosic biomass, results in superior economics in the production of ethanol.
Scientific breakthroughs by Verenium are enabling the economic production of ethanol from a renewable and inexpensive energy source - plant waste materials
There are at least five advantages to using cellulosic biomass as the raw material for biofuels: (1) use of non-food crops, (2) relatively low feedstock cost, (3) use of marginal lands for feedstock growth, (4) beneficial net energy balance, and (5) less fertilizer and water usage.
Biomass is a complex material composed of cellulose (30-50%), hemicellulose (20-40%), and lignin (15-30%). The exact composition varies from plant to plant. Since it is found in nearly all plant life, cellulose is the most abundant molecule on earth. Like the starch found in corn kernals, cellulose is a polymer of the sugar glucose. It forms part of the cell wall and is designed to contribute to the structural integrity of the plant. Hemicellulose is a more random and amorphous structure of connected sugars.
There are several technical and economic challenges associated with the large-scale production of ethanol from cellulosic biomass, including collection and transport of the biomass raw material, preprocessing or pretreatment, dilute acid hydrolysis and enzymatic conversion of pretreated plant material to sugars, and fermentation of a mixed sugar stream.
Verenium has made advances in each of these areas over the past several years, greatly improving the likelihood that cellulosic ethanol will become a commercial reality in the very near future. In particular, we are using proprietary and unique microorganisms, called ethanologens, to ferment cellulose and hemicellulose from multiple feedstocks into ethanol.
Verenium not only has the solution for creating low-carbon, low-cost cellulosic biofuels, it also has the first-mover advantage.The need for alternative fuels
The urgent need for cleaner automotive fuels is pushing the private sector to develop low-carbon alternatives. Cellulosic ethanol is widely recognized as one of the most promising ways to meet our need for clean fuels with dramatically lower energy inputs and net carbon emissions. Verenium is a leader in the development of cellulosic ethanol - a clean-burning fuel derived from canes, grasses, softwoods, and other biomass sources that are readily available and are not utilized for food.
The need for alternative fuels has led to new federal law mandating the production and use of billions of gallons of biofuels within the next decade. The market is vast. The first companies entering the market for next-generation cellulosic ethanol will be tapping into a multi-billion dollar market at the beginning of commercialization.
Verenium has Developed the Key Technology to Enable the Economic Conversion of Biomass to Ethanol
In 1995, Verenium, then Celunol, secured an exclusive license to commercialize proprietary cellulosic ethanol technology developed at the University of Florida. Working with the University and other academic and industry sources, including Dartmouth, Auburn, The University of Colorado, and the University of California at Davis, Verenium has continued to develop its unique technology to release the full sugar potential of cellulosic biomass.
Today, Verenium continues as an R&D leader in the cellulosic ethanol field. The company operates a laboratory in San Diego, California, as well as a research laboratory at its pilot plant in Jennings, Louisiana.
Converting Plant Sugar to Cellulosic Ethanol
The sugar in cellulosic biomass is locked up in the form of cellulose and hemicellulose. Cellulose contains glucose, the same type of sugar - six-carbon (C6) sugar - that is found in cornstarch and that can be fermented to ethanol using conventional yeasts. However, hemicellulose contains mainly non-glucose sugars-five-carbon (C5) sugars. Conventional yeasts cannot ferment most non-glucose sugars to ethanol with commercially acceptable yields.
Verenium’s technology enables almost complete conversion of all the sugars found in cellulosic biomass. This efficiency advantage, combined with the low input cost of cellulosic biomass, results in superior economics in the production of ethanol.
Scientific breakthroughs by Verenium are enabling the economic production of ethanol from a renewable and inexpensive energy source - plant waste materials
There are at least five advantages to using cellulosic biomass as the raw material for biofuels: (1) use of non-food crops, (2) relatively low feedstock cost, (3) use of marginal lands for feedstock growth, (4) beneficial net energy balance, and (5) less fertilizer and water usage.
Biomass is a complex material composed of cellulose (30-50%), hemicellulose (20-40%), and lignin (15-30%). The exact composition varies from plant to plant. Since it is found in nearly all plant life, cellulose is the most abundant molecule on earth. Like the starch found in corn kernals, cellulose is a polymer of the sugar glucose. It forms part of the cell wall and is designed to contribute to the structural integrity of the plant. Hemicellulose is a more random and amorphous structure of connected sugars.
There are several technical and economic challenges associated with the large-scale production of ethanol from cellulosic biomass, including collection and transport of the biomass raw material, preprocessing or pretreatment, dilute acid hydrolysis and enzymatic conversion of pretreated plant material to sugars, and fermentation of a mixed sugar stream.
Verenium has made advances in each of these areas over the past several years, greatly improving the likelihood that cellulosic ethanol will become a commercial reality in the very near future. In particular, we are using proprietary and unique microorganisms, called ethanologens, to ferment cellulose and hemicellulose from multiple feedstocks into ethanol.