HYDROLYSIS AND FERMENTATION OF ORGANIC WASTES AND BIOMASS TO GASEOUS AND LIQUID CHEMICALS AND FUELS

Objective

The processes to be examined convert biomass into chemical feedstocks for industry. The products can also be used as liquid energy carriers, e.g. as a diesel or gasoline replacement in conventional vehicles. The biomass substrate can come from industrial or municipal wastes and by-products or from agriculture or forestry.

The work proposed targets particularly chemical feedstock production from low-lignin industrial by-products. Both processes are fermentations and include a hydrolysis pretreatment of the biomass.

The first process is the continuous Acetone-Butanol-Ethanol (ABE) fermentation with cell immobilisation and in-situ, on-line product separation. The products are used as solvents or chemical feedstocks in the chemical industry or can be used as diesel (up to ca. 40 %) or gasoline (up to ca. 100% as a mixture) extenders in conventional vehicles. The continuous ABE fermentation has only been realised in the laboratory.

Some attention will be paid to the simultaneous saccherification and fermentation of biomass for both the ABE and Ethanol Fermentations.

Four partners in three countries will partake in the project. The coordinator is a university institute with many years experience with both the ABE Fermentation and product separation. Two of the partners are public research organisations, and the fourth partner is a company active in by-product biomass collection and usage. These partners have many years experience in hydrolysis, the ABE,and Ethanol fermentations and in product separation. All work extends previous research and uses existant equipment extensively.

Fields of science

• engineering and technology › environmental engineering › energy and fuels › liquid fuels
• natural sciences › chemical sciences › organic chemistry › alcohols
• agricultural sciences › agricultural biotechnology › biomass
• agricultural sciences › agriculture, forestry, and fisheries › forestry
• engineering and technology › industrial biotechnology › bioprocessing technologies › fermentation

Programme(s)

• FP3-AIR - Specific research and technological development and demonstration programme (EEC) in the field of agriculture and agro-industry, including fisheries, 1990-1994

Topic(s)

• 325 - Bioenergy

Call for proposal

Data not available

Funding Scheme

CSC - Cost-sharing contracts

Coordinator

UNIVERSITAT WIEN

Address

Getreidemarkt 9/159
1060 Wien
Austria

Participants (3)

ATO - DLO

Netherlands

Address

P.0. Box
6700 AA Wageningen

CIEMAT

Spain

Address

22,avda Complutense
28040 Madrid

N.V. VAM

Netherlands

Address

P.0. Box
1200 HK Hilversum