Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IITK) have found that zero-cost materials such as grass and water hyacinths can be converted into large quantities of the biofuel, cellulosic ethanol. Using a method named pore-scale phenomena, the plants can be used to increase the amount of fermentable sugars and bioethanol from hemicellulose, a naturally occurring polymer found on plants’ cell walls. The researchers say their findings could help in developing biofuels for use by vehicles or other applications.
Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IITK) have found that zero-cost materials such as grass and water hyacinths can be converted into large quantities of the biofuel, cellulosic ethanol. Using a method named pore-scale phenomena, the plants can be used to increase the amount of fermentable sugars and bioethanol from hemicellulose, a naturally occurring polymer found on plants’ cell walls. Hemicellulose has not been used widely in biofuel production, as until now the chemical reactions were only able to release a quarter of the soluble sugars needed for ethanol production.