BioFuels Journal

Los Alamos, NM—Los Alamos National Laboratory's top 10 science stories of 2011 illustrate the broad variety of scientific excellence that's the hallmark of the Laboratory.

This year's stories include alternative energy research, world record magnetic fields, disease tracking, the study of Mars, climate change, fuel cells, solar wind, and magnetic reconnection.

Unlocking Biomass Energy

Los Alamos National Laboratory researchers are trying to rearrange the puzzle pieces preventing conversion of nonedible biomass such as cornstalks and switch grass into ethanol, a useful biofuel.

Plant cell walls are made up of layers of densely packed molecules. Because of this sheet-like arrangement of layers, it's difficult for enzymes that promote conversion of bulk plant cellulose into fermentable sugars to attack interior layers of material. Consequently, current conversion methods rely upon the use of costly, potentially toxic materials to break down biomass.

Los Alamos chemical modeling showed that cellulose can become vulnerable to enzymatic attack if pretreated with cost-effective and relatively benign ammonia.

Subsequent research showed the ammonia pretreatment increases conversion efficiency five times over normal methods, reducing potential cost barriers to biomass conversion.

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• LANL

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