DOE outlines scientific research path to cleaner fuels
This new roadmap aims to accelerate the development of technological breakthroughs needed to make cellulosic ethanol a practical alternative to gasoline.
Recent biotechnological breakthroughs have made cost-effective, sustainable production of cellulosic ethanol attainable, finds a report released in July by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The research needed to get there involves maximizing the yields of biomass crops, developing advanced technology to break down cellulosic materials into sugars, and optimizing the fermentation process that converts sugars to ethanol.
Cellulose-based ethanol is a developing technology that uses fibrous materials such as wood chips, switchgrass, or farm residues to make biofuels. Large-scale production of ethanol from biomass is needed to replace 30% of the fuels consumed by the U.S. transportation sector in 2004 with biofuels by 2030, according to DOE. The agency set this goal in response to President Bush’s advanced energy initiative announced earlier this year.
