DETAILED MATERIAL BALANCE AND ETHANOL YIELD CALCULATIONS FOR THE BIOMASS-TO-ETHANOL CONVERSION PROCESS

Applying material balance calculations to the evaluation and optimizat ion of lignocellulosic biomass conversion processes is fundamentally i mportant. The lack of a general framework for material balance calcula tions and inconsistent compositional analysis data have made it diffic ult to compare results from different research groups. Material balanc e templates have been developed to follow accurately the distribution of carbon in lignocellulosic substrates through the pretreatment and s imultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) processes, and pro vide information on overall carbon recovery, recovery of individual su gars, and solubilization of biomass components. Based on material bala nce considerations, we developed equations that allow us to compute ov erall ethanol yields for biochemical conversion of biomass correctly.