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Chapter 4 - Pretreatment Technologies for Lignocellulosic Biomass Refineries

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Pretreatment is a critical step in processing lignocellulosic biomass into biofuel and bioproducts and is considered the energy and cost center of the biomass conversion process. Although a large number of pretreatment technologies have been developed, not all the techniques are viable on a commercial scale at this stage. Moreover, the technology choice and process conditions depend highly on the type of biomass and the overall biorefinery scheme. This chapter provides an overview of different pretreatment methods, including their mechanism, important process parameters, current status, and challenges. The opportunities associated with new technologies and approaches are presented. Emphasis is placed on low-severity thermal pretreatment technologies. The chapter also provides a brief discussion of the challenges to achieving the economic viability of the technologies on a commercial scale.

Research Organization:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)
DOE Contract Number:
AC36-08GO28308
OSTI ID:
2000551
Report Number(s):
NREL/CH-2800-87477; MainId:88252; UUID:7e7c0d1e-9f91-4600-9bb9-80dd534467e7; MainAdminID:70611
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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  • Kumar, Parveen; Barrett, Diane M.; Delwiche, Michael J.
  • Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, Vol. 48, Issue 8, p. 3713-3729 https://doi.org/10.1021/ie801542g
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