Cellulosic Ethanol as a viable BioFuel By: Petrell Vereen

Cellulosic Ethanol has the same molecular and structural composition as the well-known biofuel ethanol. The difference lies in the origination of the glucose molecules. Cellulosic ethanol, as the name implies, is made from cellulose in plants, which is thought of as highly renewable as it is readily available. This second generation fuel is not ready for mass production in factories yet, due to the still looming high cost of production. It simply cannot compete with the still lower cost fuel. Raw materials such as straw, wood chips, or other high energy, and highly structured cellulose containing plants can be processed. The cellulose in these materials, though, is locked within a matrix of other types of structure holding material like lignin and hemicellulose. Treatment can be done with acids or enzymes. Acids react with some of the matrix, while enzymes hydrolyze many of the structures to break them, while also polarizing some of the perishable contents of the biomass to allow solvation to occur. Enzymes from bacteria and fungi then hydrolyze the cellulose further, breaking the polysaccharide into cellobiose, or double glucose molecules. These are then broken further into glucose through hydrolysis. These glucose molecules become fermented by microbes, going through the cycle from 6-carbon Fructose, to pyruvate, to ethanol, which must be distilled from water, residue, and microbes among other things. The complex process takes time to optimize, and thats why it is not as economically viable as other fuels yet. Cellulosic Ethanol is still relatively expensive over its competition, pertaining mostly to gasoline. The fuel still lies high above the cost of gasoline per gallon, with the goal being close to production costs being around $1.00 a gallon in order to compete with conventional gasoline. It can be mixed with gasoline, and is already used in race cars and places where ethanol is sold alongside gas. Byproducts of production are generally non-cash generating prospects and are thrown away as waste. One useful byproduct of fermentation though is CO2 which is bubbled, under pressure, through beverages to create carbonation. There is a cost involved with changing how the fuel is distributed to cars. Due to ethanols corrosive properties, stations must have special nozzles, computers to measure air to ethanol ratio, and hoses. Cars accordingly, must have fuel tanks to accommodate for those properties. With gas companies that have almost too much money, these costs will most likely not be passed to consumers so many problems are mitigated. The good thing about cellulosic ethanol and ethanol in general, is that engines already can burn ethanol as a fuel just like gasoline, and many gas stations already have gasoline with 10% ethanol mixed in that can run in almost any engine. E85 is the standard for high concentration

ethanol distributed at gas stations and requires small modification to components that come in contact with ethanol to provide corrosion protection. Ethanol has a much higher octane rating than gasoline when it is at 100% concentration, reaching 110-120 while gasoline sits at 85-95. This results in the widespread use of highly concentrated and purified ethanol in racing cars due its high performance inducing qualities. Although many use 90-100% ethanol, many will move to all ethanol to reap the benefits. Blends work well as the cost of fuel is lowered while keeping the performance at its peak. These blends are already implemented in places all over the world, as pure ethanol is almost never obtainable. This is in part because of its intoxicating qualities. As 200-proof alcohol, manufacturers add a small amount of gasoline to stop it from being ingested. When cellulosic ethanol can be financially viable, it will also be viable to distribute it. Ethanol doesnt provide many advantages over gas when combusted. CO2, unfortunately, finds its way into every complete combustion reaction. With CO2 as a product, many problems come up in the long term, rather than short term. Global warming is one effect that comes from over CO2 production as CO2 traps energy after it penetrates the atmosphere, known as the greenhouse effect. Acid rain becomes more prevalent also when CO2 levels are high due to the high concentrations of carbonic acid being formed by reaction with water. This is unavoidable when ethanol is combusted, but also when gasoline is combusted. Only other biofuels or alternate energy sources could fend off these problems, and also have problems of their own. The government need only invest in more companies that are researching and/or producing ethanol, as production is there for regular ethanol, but cellulosic ethanol and research for better processes are lacking. The negatives in production are few, if any, while the negatives during use are many in number. CO2, among H2O, are both produced after ethanol is combusted in the engine of a car. While water is generally harmless, CO2 remains to be a problem that is passed over from its last generation cousin, gasoline, even though less is produced. Cellulosic ethanol is not different in its combustion to ethanol produced from crops like corn and wheat and therefore doesnt provide any advantages over it. This CO2 can only really be used in a few different reactions that are commonplace on earth. If stored, the CO2 could be used to grow plants faster through increase in photosynthetic rate, used to carbonate water in beverages, and used in other carbon fixation cycles that work to cycle carbon through earths biosphere. CO2 can be obtained after the fermentation also, as a byproduct, and used to do all of the aforementioned. The large amount of CO2 that is obtained from the combustion, though, is hard to contain, due to the large amount, and high energy at which it leaves the engine. Ethanol in general, as a predominant biofuel, is already distributed at many gas stations around the world and cellulosic ethanol will be no different. All US vehicles on the road use some amount of ethanol as the US puts a small amount into all gasoline. High concentrations require

only tiny modifications to the innards of the car that come in contact with corrosive ethanol. Increase in availability can only happen through thorough research of more effective ways to create ethanol, such as production of cellulosic ethanol instead of use of corn and wheat that deprive people of the food supply and increase food prices. Research of more cost-effective ways is the only way to put ethanol into a competitive position against gasoline. Without this research and funding, new way to produce ethanol, like the ones being used to make cellulosic ethanol, are going to be far and few between. Cellulosic ethanol is the one of the biofuels of the future that will make the earth cleaner and greener. Its production is complex, but optimize-able. The costs are outweighed by the benefits. The changes to how people get fuel will be minimal at most. It is one of the most powerful, renewable, and easiest to obtain biofuels out in the world today, and will take over, very soon, as the predominant biofuel, if not the most dominant fuel in the world.