Cellulosic ethanol that originates from sustainable bioenergy crops and municipal waste may provide an alternative fuel that can reduce our dependency on foreign oil while at the same time provide a more environmentally friendly fuel source. Unfortunately, the commercial availability of cellulosic ethanol is plagued at this time by the slow hydrolysis of cellulose (which produces the required sugar monomers necessary for bioconversion). This project investigates the conversion of cellulose to free sugars by various enzymatic or microbial mechanisms.  A particular focus will be placed on the microbial system of termites, which assists the termite in digesting the wood that they consume.

Conversion of cellulose to free sugars by microbial systems

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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