Choosing biorefining platforms for the commercialisation of the biomass-to-ethanol process

Continued insecurity around oil supplies has helped to keep oil prices high and the combination of these factors have driven a rapid expansion in global bioethanol and biodiesel production. While foods such as sugar and corn are still the dominant feedstock for biofuel production, interest in utilising lignocellulose for the production of a 2(nd) generation of biofuels has grown significantly. The agricultural sector has made considerable progress in developing bio-based fuels and chemicals. Technologies from the agricultural sector may be combined with recent technical improvements that have made wood-based bioconversion more feasible. The biorefinery concept has been proposed as a means to extract maximum value from lignocellulosics, of which only a portion of the chemical structure is suitable for biofuel production. Within the biorefinery some components of the lignocellulosic feedstock may be used as the basis for other value-added products. Recent discussions around the lignocellulosic-based biorefinery suggest that two technological platforms may be suitable for biomass-to-ethanol production: the biological platform and the thermochemical platform. A trade-off analysis has been developed that examines these two platforms, identifying the bottlenecks in the processes and the state of development for each, including pilot or demonstration-scale facilities. The ability of each platform to serve as the basis for an operating biorefinery is explored through a review of the value-added products that each is associated with. The study provides perspective on the ability of different technological platforms to meet policy goals within certain timeframes, and may be utilised to help financial institutions, companies, and governments decide which platform is appropriate for meeting the needs of their respective constituents.