GreenWood Resources licenses ORNL invention to boost biofuel yield
Date: 10.10.2016
GreenWood Resources has licensed an Oak Ridge National Laboratory technology based on the discovery of a gene in poplar (Populus trichocarpa) that makes it easier to convert poplar trees into biofuels.
GreenWood, a global timberland investment and asset management company based in Oregon, plans to commercialize the technology to select and breed better varieties of poplar with less lignin content, which simplifies the conversion process and ultimately lowers the overall costs of biofuel production.
Led by Wellington Muchero, a team from the Department of Energy's ORNL, the University of Tennessee and West Virginia University identified a gene linked to the synthesis of lignin, a key component of plant cell walls that provides sturdiness but hinders the production of biofuels. Growing poplar trees with less lignin would provide easier access to the plant sugars that are converted into renewable fuels.
The team's research showed the gene could reduce lignin content by up to 50 percent and increase ethanol yield by up to 250 percent on biomass that was not chemically or mechanically pretreated.
"We began with field studies, looking at poplar trees growing in their natural environment as well as experimental field sites in the Pacific Northwest region, and found naturally occurring genetic mutations that caused the most lignin reduction in these trees," ORNL's Muchero said.
