Extraction of Biomass

The natural organic (humic) content of the soil largely remains after these processes and can be used for successful cultivation. Hydrocarbons are re-precipitated as the water cools, whereas some compounds, such as pesticides, are degraded to less-toxic materials during the extraction process. Soil containing explosives has also been treated in the same pilot plant using static extraction [48]. The destruction of TNT, RDX and HMX was 99.99%, 99.9% and 97.9%, respectively. 

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Chemical Production Through Green Chemical Extraction of Biomass... 

Ionic liquids have only just begun to be investigated for biomass related processes within the last 10 years, yet there are already many exciting examples of how they can be applied in this area. They have been used in cellulose functionalisation, thermochemical depolymerisation, enzymatic depolymerisation, extraction of biomass components, and biomass pretreatment processes. In a growing number of cases, ionic liquid processes have been patented, which suggests future commercial value. 

Figure 9. Direct extraction of biomass to provide biopolymers for use in manufacture of biobased products.

Figure 8 illustrates one of the processing schemes used for separating various components in a hydrocarbon-containing plant. Acetone extraction removes the polyphenols, glycerides, and sterols, and benzene extraction removes the hydrocarbons. If the biomass species in question contain low concentrations of the nonhydrocarbon components, exclusive of the carbohydrate and protein fractions, direct extraction of the hydrocarbons with benzene or a similar solvent might be preferred. 

Supercritical fluid solvents have been tested for reactive extractions of liquid and gaseous fuels from heavy oils, coal, oil shale, and biomass. In some cases the solvent participates in the reactions, as in the hydrolysis of coal and heavy oils with water. Related applications include conversion of cellulose to glucose in water, dehgnincation of wood with ammonia, and liquefaction of lignin in water. 

The reliance of fossil fuels has been challenged by lower cost and renewable sources that are more environmentally friendly. The traditional chemical plant has met serious competition from green plants. Many monomers are now made via fermentation, using low-cost sugars as feedstock. Some of the commodity monomers are under siege by chemicals extracted from biomass. Monomer production has been expanded to include many more monomers from nature. 

Cell Walls (CW). After the extraction of the cellular enzymes from the biomass, the residue of homogenized cells was repeatedly washed with water and finally with 96 % ethanol, dried and the dry weight of cell walls was determined (10). 

The method of pure polymer recovery from the biomass prior to characterization can influence the molecular weight of the polymer significantly. Extraction of PHB-bacterial cells with organic solvents yields polymers with higher molecular weight compared to sodium hypochorite treatment [44-46]. Pretreatment of the biomass with a surfactant prior to hypochlorite digestion... 

The authors would like to acknowledge the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and Alberta Agricultural Research Institute (AARI) for financial support of our research program on sub-/supercritical fluid technology applied to the extraction of phytochemicals from biomass. 

Bacterial cells of Oenococcus oeni incubated for 48 h with three azo dyes (Fast red, Fast orange, and Methanil yellow) gave rise to decolorization due to adsorption, from 68% with Fast red to 30% with Fast orange and Methanil yellow [41]. Ozdemir et al. [44] observed a 93.9% decolorization of Acid Black 210 within 24 h by Vibrio harveyi TEMS1, a bioluminescent bacterium isolated from coastal seawater in Turkey. After extraction in methanol of biomass, the major part of the decolorized dye was recovered, indicating that decolorization was mainly due to... 

Starch and fatty acids are the main food constituents of biomass. Sugar is derived from starch by hydrolysis or directly by extraction from sugar cane or beet. Fermentation converts sugars into alcohol that can be directly used as fuel, or in principle can be used as the raw material of a bioreftnery plant for further upgrading. Triglycerides, derived from oil seeds, are used to be converted into biodiesel through transesterification processes (Fig. 1.14). 

Hustedt, H., Kroner, K. H. and Papmichael, N. Proc. Biochem. (October, 1988) 129-137. Continuous cross-current aqueous 2-phase extraction of enzymes from biomass - automated recovery in production scale. 

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