Biomass Group, Nanjing Agricultural University, PO Box 68, 40 Dianjiangtai Road, Nanjing 210031

  In the saccharification of lignocellulosic materials, enzymatic hydrolysis is regarded as a green approach operating under mild reaction conditions with subsequent higher glucose yields. However, the hydrolysis rate can be declined by the presence of lignin, which acts as a physical barrier shielding cellulose from enzymatic attack. Lignin can also cause losses of enzymes (cellulases and β-glucosidases) through their binding to lignin, and deactivation of enzyme activities can occur from products arising from lignin degradation. In order to access the cellulose and reduce lignin before hydrolysis, some pretreatment methods can be developed by using white-rot fungi. （更多…）

  In view of the depletion of fossil fuel reserves together with the ongoing climate change, the utilization of renewable resources for the sustainable development of our society has become indispensible. Biomass, the only current sustainable source of organic carbon, is a promising alternative for fossil fuel to produce renewable chemicals and biofuels. Under this background, BIT’s 2^nd World Congress of Bioenergy (WCBE-2012) brought together academic professors, industrial leaders, policy makers and investors to share their new research achievements, warmly discussed and analyzed the sustainability development of bioenergy. （更多…）

  An awarding ceremony to acknowledge foreign experts who have made special contributions to the social and economic development of Yunnan Province was held at Kunming Zhengzhuangying Hotel on April 26.Prof. Fang Zhen of XTBG was one of the 10 winners of 2012 Yunnan Friendship Award, presented each year by the Yunnan Provincial Givernment. （更多…）

  Lignin (20%), cellulose (50%) and hemicellulose (25%) are three major constituents of typical lignocellulosic biomass like wood and grass. Among them, lignin is a phenolic biopolymer, which is the most thermal-stable and the most difficult to be degraded by normal biological or thermal methods. Additionallly, it is the industrial waste of cellulosic ethanol and paper making, which makes its recycle very significant. Adschiri group in TohokuUniversityfound that 99% of lignin degraded into phenolic oil in high temperature water-phenol (400 ^oC). The phenolic oil would not repolymerize to solid even after 2 h reaction. However, we did not know if these reactions were homogeneous reactions, as well as the actual reaction pathways. Professor Zhen Fang in biomass group of XTBG (Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden), CAS (http://brg.groups.xtbg.ac.cn/) collaborated withTohokuUniversity andSaskatchewanUniversity. They found that lignin was totally dissolved in hot-compressed water-phenol mixture, which greatly promoted the hydrolysis of lignin into phenolic oil. The addition of phenol prevented the repolymerization of formed phenolic oil. Afterwards, the author elucidated the homogeneous/heterogeneous pathway and mechanism of lignin degrading in hot-compressed water. According to the proposed pathway, lignin can totally be degraded into phenolic oil, which can be further processed into bioplastic, chemicals and biofuel. The related paper was published in the international journal “Bioresource Technology”. （更多…）