A biorefinery processing perspective: Treatment of lignocellulosic materials for the production of value-added products

• Published in: Bioresource technology Vol. 101; no. 23; pp. 8915 - 8922
• Main Authors: FitzPatrick, Michael, Champagne, Pascale, Cunningham, Michael F., Whitney, Ralph A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.12.2010; [New York, NY]: Elsevier Ltd; Elsevier
• Subjects: biobased products; Biological and medical sciences; Biomass; Bioproducts; Biorefinery; biorefining; Biotechnology; Biotechnology - economics; Biotechnology - methods; Cellulose; Economics; Energy-Generating Resources; Energy-Generating Resources - economics; Feedstock; feedstocks; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; hemicellulose; Industrial applications; lignin; Lignin - metabolism; Lignocellulose; metabolism; methods; Plants (organisms); Refining; research and development; sustainable technology; Value-added products; Bioproducts; Biorefinery; Value-added products; Biomass; Lignocellulose; Organic product; Lignocellulosics; Added value
• ISSN: 0960-8524; 1873-2976; 1873-2976
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2010.06.125

In the last decade, there has been increasing research interest in the value of bio-sourced materials recovered from residual biomass. Research that focuses on the use of extracted, recovered and/or synthesized bioproducts for direct industrial applications is essential for the implementation of sustainable approaches in a forward-looking bio-based economy. The effective use of biomass feedstocks, particularly lignocellulosic materials (plant biomass predominantly comprised of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin), in large-scale applications will evolve from innovative research aimed at the development and implementation of biorefineries – multi-step, multi-product facilities established for specific bio-sourced feedstocks. This paper presents recent advances in lignocellulosic biomass processing and analysis from a biorefining perspective. In addition, existing industrial biomass processing applications are discussed and examined within a biorefinery context.