Ethanol from biomass hydrolysis to replace current methods: Nexant

London (Platts)--28Dec2006

Biomass hydrolysis and biomass-to-liquids processing in integrated
thermochemical platforms could replace existing techniques of producing
ethanol and gasoline, diesel range biofuels, US-based Nexant said in a
study published Wednesday.
The study found that fatty acid methyl ester biodiesel will probably be a
transition technology, capable of substituting for only a small fraction of
global diesel demand. However, as a biodegradable, low-toxicity product, it
will likely still hold market share far into the future.
The study also found that bioethanol from grains and sugar, although an
excellent high-octane gasoline blendstock, has many practical problems and is
also likely to be transitional over the long term. As a result, the next phase
of biofuel development is likely to be ethanol made by the fermentation of
sugars obtained through biomass hydrolysis, the survey revealed.
--newsdesk@platts.com

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