Featured News and Puiblications
Why Energy is (Really) Important: Biofuels Are Not Optional
- Category: Oral Presentations
- Published on 12 January 2012
Dr. Bruce Dale presented "Why Energy is (Really) Important: Biofuels Are Not Optional" at the MABA Winter meeting in Lansing, Michigan on January 11, 2012.
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Role of Enzyme Blend Composition...On Pretreated Biomass Saccharification Efficiency-- Annual Meeting 2011
- Category: Video presentations
- Published on 08 December 2011
Role of Enzyme Blend Composition, Biomass Particle Size and Solids Loading On Pretreated Biomass Saccharification Efficiency- A presentation made by Shishir Chundawat was posted by AICHE as a webinar.
Optimization of AFEX™ pretreatment conditions and enzyme mixtures to maximize sugar release from upland and lowland switchgrass
- Category: Journal Articles
- Published on 09 November 2011
Abstract:
Switchgrass is a North American grass that is considered to be a highly promising herbaceous bioenergy
feedstock. Differences in processing conditions and yields specifically related to switchgrass cultivar or
cytotype (upland or lowland) can be confounded by differences in harvest date or region of growth.
For this research, AFEX™ pretreatment conditions and hydrolysis enzyme mixtures were statistically
optimized for Alamo (lowland) and Shawnee (upland) switchgrass that had been harvested in December
in Oklahoma. Optimal pretreatment conditions and enzyme mixtures were almost identical for both varieties
and gave similar mass sugar yields. Inclusion of hemicellulases in the enzyme mixture maintained
total sugar yields with 50% reduction in enzyme loading. Regardless of variety, the biorefinery should be
able to obtain high sugar yields using the same pretreatment and hydrolysis conditions to process
switchgrass grown under the same environmental conditions, in the same location, and harvested at
the same time of the year.
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reWorking Michigan: MSU gets grant to expand bio-fuel production
- Category: Video presentations
- Published on 12 April 2011
A $3 million federal grant to Michigan State University will help fund research into making bio-fuels that are real alternatives to oil and gas. Think grasses, wood chips, straw and saw dust, converted to liquid fuel.
Dr. Dale makes Top 25 People in Bioenergy
- Category: Announcements
- Published on 11 October 2010
Congratulations, Dr Dale for making the top 25 of Biofuels Digest's "Top 100 people in Bioenergy"!
Outstanding Student Presentation -
- Category: Announcements
- Published on 29 April 2010
BCRL Grad student, Leonardo Sousa received the outstanding student presentation in fundamental research (Characterization of AFEX degradation products as a function of pretreatment severity) during the recent 32nd Symposium on Biotechnology for Fuels and Chemicals.
Dr. Bruce Dale is professor of Chemical Engineering at Michigan State University. He is the Associate Director of the University's Office of Biobased Technologies, and the principle investigator at the Biomass Conversion Research Laboratory.
