BIOMASS HUB

A new pipeline at the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) is analyzing 1,000 samples of biomass at a time, finding which one, combined with the right enzyme, most eagerly gives up its sugars to be converted into biofuel.  The pipeline provides an important tool for accelerating the discovery process for potential biofuel feedstocks to help meet the 36 billion gallons of advanced biofuels mandated under the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) and the EPA’s corresponding RFS2 by 2022.

The high throughput Biomass Recalcitrance Pipeline was created to analyze the large number of poplar, switch grass, and other biomass samples being produced by the BioEnergy Science Center.  BESC is a collaboration of 20 university, industrial and national laboratory partners developing a fundamental understanding of the factors controlling the release of sugar in biomass feedstocks.

Mark Davis, principal manager for NREL’s Chemical and Catalyst Science Group, explains:

It’s not just about finding the miracle plants, it’s about finding a miracle enzyme, too.  [The high throughput assays] will allow us to screen libraries of enzymes that are able to break down the crystalline cellulose and help us develop new enzyme cocktails.

The pipeline’s extreme analytical capacity, unheard of a few years ago, is important because it’s not just a question of finding the right species of poplar tree, but finding that needle in a haystack, a single tree that for reasons of genetics and chemistry, gladly gives up its sugars to enzymes. Find that tree, and a new line of fast-growing poplars can sprout from agri-forests, providing an ongoing harvest for renewable transportation fuel.

More on the pipeline from NREL.