Enzyme conversion of lignocellulosic plant materials for resource recovery in a Controlled Ecological Life Support System. |
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Authors: | K L Kohlmann P Westgate A Velayudhan J Weil A Sarikaya M A Brewer R L Hendrickson M R Ladisch |
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Institution: | Laboratory of Renewable Resources Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-1295, USA. |
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Abstract: | A large amount of inedible plant material composed primarily of the carbohydrate materials cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin is generated as a result of plant growth in a Controlled Ecological Life-Support System (CELSS). Cellulose is a linear homopolymer of glucose, which when properly processed will yield glucose, a valuable sugar because it can be added directly to human diets. Hemicellulose is a heteropolymer of hexoses and pentoses that can be treated to give a sugar mixture that is potentially a valuable fermentable carbon source. Such fermentations yield desirable supplements to the edible products from hydroponically-grown plants such as rapeseed, soybean, cowpea, or rice. Lignin is a three-dimensionally branched aromatic polymer, composed of phenyl propane units, which is susceptible to bioconversion through the growth of the white rot fungus, Pluerotus ostreatus. Processing conditions, that include both a hot water pretreatment and fungal growth and that lead to the facile conversion of plant polysaccharides to glucose, are presented. |
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