Sugar yield variation 'undescribed' in pilot biofuel composition

Biofuel composition in pilot schemes for ethanol processing has historically not examined the different yields of sugar that occur due to genotyping of feedstock, researchers claim.

Their report is published in Biotechnology for Biofuels, which accepts findings relating to the processing of biomass using enzymes, fermentation and fractionation of energy sources.

According to the team, from the University of Copenhagen, biofuel composition can be affected by a number of genotypic qualities of wheat straw and by the pre-treatment of the feedstock.

For instance, the distribution of particle sizes achieved during pre-treatment, removal of hemicellulose and presence of ash can all affect the sugar yield.

Coarser particles lead to a sugar yield between 11 and 21 per cent lower in subsequent ethanol production than finer particles, the scientists found.

"A significant difference in sugar yields of 17 per cent was found between the highest and lowest yielding cultivar," they write in their abstract.