Bioenergy
Currently, the main research emphasis in converting lignocellulosic biomass to biofuels is on biochemical conversion
of either dedicated energy crops or crop residues into ethanol. However, ethanol has shortcomings such as low
volumetric energy density and incapability with much of the nation’s fuels infrastructure.
Alternatively, thermochemical processing of biomass provides interesting alternatives to cellulosic ethanol
via enzymatic hydrolysis. In particular, fast pyrolysis of biomass followed by catalytic upgrading of the resulting
bio-oil into synthetic gasoline and diesel that has none of the disadvantages of ethanol. How compositional properties
of biomass affect thermochemical conversion processes is less well understood. The optimal plant ideotype likely
differs substantially from that for biochemical conversion. In collaboration with the Bioeconomy Insitute at ISU,
we currently aim to understand, which plant properties affect the efficiency of thermochemical conversion of biomass
with focus on maize stover.
Current research projects:
Finalized research projects: