School of Life Science and Biotechnology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, 116023, China.
Adv Biochem Eng Biotechnol. 2012;128:25-51. doi: 10.1007/10_2011_129.
China is suffering from a sustained shortage of crude oil supply, making fuel ethanol and other biofuels alternative solutions for this issue. However, taking into account the country's large population and dwindling arable land due to rapid urbanization, it is apparent that current fuel ethanol production from grain-based feedstocks is not sustainable, and lignocellulosic biomass, particularly agricultural residues that are abundantly available in China, is the only choice for China to further expand its fuel ethanol production, provided economically viable processes can be developed. In this chapter, cutting edge progress in bioethanol is reviewed, with a focus on the understanding of the molecular structure of the feedstock, leading pretreatment technologies, enzymatic hydrolysis of the cellulose component and strategies for the co-fermentation of the C5 and C6 sugars with engineered microorganisms. Finally, process integration and optimization is addressed with a case study on the COFCO Corporation's pilot plant, and challenges and perspectives for commercial production of bioethanol are highlighted.
中国正面临持续的原油供应短缺问题，燃料乙醇和其他生物燃料成为解决这一问题的替代方案。然而，考虑到中国庞大的人口和因快速城市化而不断减少的耕地，利用粮食为原料生产燃料乙醇显然是不可持续的，而木质纤维素生物质，特别是在中国大量存在的农业废弃物，是中国进一步扩大燃料乙醇生产的唯一选择，只要能够开发出具有经济可行性的工艺。本章主要综述了生物乙醇领域的最新进展，重点关注对原料的分子结构、先进预处理技术、纤维素成分的酶解以及利用工程微生物共发酵 C5 和 C6 糖的理解，最后还通过中粮集团的中试工厂案例研究讨论了工艺集成和优化，并强调了生物乙醇工业化生产面临的挑战和展望。
