Enzyme Enables Production of Nutritious Animal Feed from Biofuel Byproducts

摘要

With fossil fuels depleting steadily and worldwide energy demands growing at an alarming rate, renewed awareness about the importance of alternative fuels has emerged. Biofuels, which have shown the most promise as alternative fuels, could offer a solution in this regard. Countries, such as Brazil have become biofuel superpowers due to the use of first-generation bioethanol to fulfill a majority of their energy needs. Large-scale production of bioethanol has, however, fuelled an intense food v/s fuel debate that questions the sustainability of the process. As much as 25% of corn produced in the US is utilized for ethanol production and hence, there has been growing concern and consequent disapproval of the use of food crops or agricultural land for the production of biofuels. The use of second-generation bioethanol from non-food crops has not yet been able to effectively allay these concerns as it is not yet commercially viable. One of the innovative solutions that are capable of making the production of bioethanol more sustainable is the concept of the biorefinery.