(460b) Production of Biofuels by Simultaneous Utilization of Mixed Sugars

Biorefinery R&D has progressed dramatically as a result of recent advancements in the field of biotechnology, with industry in Japan realizing the concept as a novel technology which could lead to the establishment of a new industry.

As current corn-based bioethanol production cannot satisfy the growing demand for bioethanol, tomorrow's production technology, in which ethanol is produced from cellulosic biomass, must be developed. The new technology must achieve high yields, be capable of simultaneous utilization of pentose and hexose sugars, and be resistant to fermentation inhibitors derived from lignocellulose degradation.

The RITE bioprocess is based on a novel concept that enables highly efficient production of a variety of biochemicals using microbial cells whose growth is artificially arrested. In essence, the growth-arrested, genetically modified Corynebacterium glutamicum cells used in the bioprocess function like inorganic catalysts of chemical processes. In the RITE bioprocess therefore, it is possible to fill a reactor to a high density with microbial cell catalysts and continuously supply a biomass substrates (sugars) through the reactor to carry out the reaction at high speed. As a result, productivity (space time yield; STY) of the RITE bioprocess is much higher than that of conventional bioprocesses and is comparable to that of chemical processes.

In collaboration with Honda R&D Co. Ltd. we aim for early industrial application of the RITE bioprocess in bioethanol production. To this end, a pilot plant built in the premises of Honda R&D Co. Ltd. should provide the technical data requisite for industrial scaling up.

In this presentation, current advances on biofuel and biochemical production at RITE will be discussed.