Recalcitrance, the result of plants evolution to resist degradation and ensure stability, involves multi-scale phenomena including intertwined networks of cellulose nanofibrils and cross-linkages of lignin and hemicellulose. Breaking the chemical barriers responsible for biomass recalcitrance lingers as a major bottleneck impeding the improvement of lignocellulosic biofuel yield. Hence, unveiling the supramolecular chemistry of plant cells structures would constitute a major step toward greater efficiency in biomass conversion. However, existing characterization technologies for chemical characterization of plant cell walls remain limited in spatial resolution.              The emergence of multi-frequency atomic force microscopy (AFM) opens the way to new dynamic attributes to resolve unexplored features of the intricate network of polymers within the plant cell wall. We will present our recent developments in multi-frequency scanning probe microscopy leading to new insights into the nanoscale physical properties of plant cell walls.            We will further introduce the concept of hybrid scanning probe microscopy for high resolution chemical mapping and localized infrared and Raman spectroscopy.  The outstanding challenge of spatial and spectral characterization is tackled with a unique platform combining tunable infrared illumination and broadband dynamic attributes at the tip-sample interface. The concept is applied to study a sequence of chemical treatments performed on biomass to mimic deconstruction processes. The results infer a remarkable complexity within the sub-layers of various chemically treated cell walls.

Hybrid nanoscale investigation of lignocellulosic biomass composition

247th National Meeting (2014)

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